Forever is a long time
by FaithAdeline
Summary: Sequel to Eternity. Edward and Bella attempt to make their relationship work while the war with Mitchell rages on. Throw in a new girl at Edward's school and Bella has a new receipe for disaster. Sometimes life always throws you lemons. r
1. Chapter 1 In the way

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 1- In the way **

**I glanced at my hair in the mirror and fluffed it out a little. Rosalie and Alice walked in, their faces grim. " You don't need to take so long Bella. You're not the one going to school." Rosalie complained. " You said we could use your bathroom a half hour ago." I smirked and turned to them. **

**" You don't need sleep, should've been in here earlier. It's not my fault your husbands' insist on showering. " I replied. **

**" Come on, please scoot and let us in." Alice smiled and batted her eyelashes. I rolled my eyes and stepped out. Sometimes you just have to give in. I walked down the stairs and into the brightly lit kitchen where Carlisle, Esme and Edward were seated. Lanina was in front of the fridge, taking out something. I couldn't really see. The three at the table turned to me with their bright topaz eyes; they'd gone hunting Saturday and boy could you tell. **

**" Good morning Isabella." Carlisle said warmly. I smiled back at him. **

**" Likewise Carlisle." I replied as I reached up to grab the bottle of blood Lanina threw at me. " Thanks Lan." I said. She nodded her head then focused her attention to her outfit. We were both going on the run and were dressed to kill in black leather pants, tank tops and boots. And seeing as how we were both loaded down with weapons, the pun is intended. I took a swig of the blood and grimaced; I hated refrigerated blood. It tasted so. . . Blah. **

**" Drink it." Lanina scolded me. " We can't afford for one of us to slip and kill someone. Well, someone we're not supposed to kill that is." I frowned and took another sip. That's what not feeding often will do to you. Edward got up and kissed me softly. I ran a hand through his copper hair and kissed him back. **

**" When are you going to let me come with you again?" He questioned me softly, his breath on my cheek. **

**" You have school." I stated simply. **

**" There's nothing I haven't learned before. Come on, we've been training for months now." **

**" I know Edward, but I don't want to chance something happening. Things have been quiet for too long. Mitchell's got to be planning something. I don't want you getting caught in the middle of anything." He smiled and squeezed my waist with his arm. **

**" I'll be fine." He assured me. I sighed and looked at him intensely. I wasn't going to win this argument. **

**" Fine. The next run I go on you can come with." I finally said. He grinned and kissed me passionately. **

**" Aw, batwoman's finally going to take batman with her." Emmett spoke up. I looked over Edward's shoulder and grinned. He winked and sat down at the table. Edward sighed and turned us around. **

**" Very funny Emmett. Oh I forgot to tell you, your old village called. They want their idiot back." Edward replied heartedly. I chuckled and put a hand on his shoulder. **

**" Alright girls, break it up." I teased. **

**" Are you sure you want to marry into this family?" Lanina questioned me. " I mean, with these genes. . . Imagine what your children would be like." I looked down at the ring on my finger and smiled. The night Edward had proposed had been perfect. A candle-lit dinner. . . A walk in my garden with the moonlight shining down on us. . . Him handing me a single red rose and professing all the love he had for me. . . And the ring was beautiful. A sapphire teardrop stone surrounded by clusters of diamonds. It was so breathtakingly beautiful. And it was mine. Ching ching. **

**" Yeah." I smiled and touched the ring. " I'm sure Lan." She smiled but then let out a squeal when Travis surprised her by wrapping his arms around her waist and spinning her around. She grinned and playfully struggled, but they ending up in a deep kiss. I was glad they'd finally given in to. . . Well whatever it was they felt for each other. I still wasn't quite sure about what the emotion was yet; but I didn't care. They were happy and that was all that mattered. **

**" Edward, Emmett, Carlisle and Esme; good morning." Travis said. They all murmured their greetings while I just stared at him, **

**" Hey! What am I? Chopped liver?" I asked. He smiled and gave me a tight hug. **

**" Good morning chopped liver." He joked. I smacked his shoulder then glanced at the clock. " Yeah, I'm back early."**

**" No, it's not that. It's just school time for the Cullen's." I said nonchalantly. Edward frowned and gathered me into his arms. **

**" I don't want to go to school." He complained. **

**" We all have to do things we don't want to." I told him softly. " Now go educate that cute brain of yours." I kissed him once more then walked over to the stairs. Holding the banister I shouted, " Alice, Rosalie, Jasper! It's time to learn." Rosalie bolted down the stairs, looking perfect as always. **

**" Emmett! Let's go!" She yelled. " Be careful today Bella." She said to me as soon as Emmett came out of the kitchen. I gave them both a quick hug then watched them get into their Mercedes and drive away. Next Alice and Jasper came down the stairs, a bright smile on both of their faces. They wished me luck, gave me a hug and drove off in their silver BMW. Edward walked out of the kitchen, a frown still on his face. I peered at his outfit with an arched eyebrow. He would've looked even hotter had he still had his dark brown hair. Too bad it washed out. And I don't think he'd be willing to dye it again. Damn. **

**" Don't give me that look." I sighed. He kissed the top of my head and wrapped my hand in his. **

**" I know. I'll see you later. Be safe my love." I kissed him gently then watched him drive away in his red mustang. When he bought it I joked that it was his mid-life crisis car. I don't think he really found the humor in that though. Carlisle and Esme walked into the front hall. **

**" We should get going." Esme began. Her and Carlisle both worked at Rosaling's Hospital. Carlisle as a doctor of course, and Esme as a nurse in the children's department. Carlisle nodded his head and threw on his white hospital robe. **

**" Be sure to watch your back today Bella." He said to me. I shook my head and ushered them outside. **

**" I know, I know. Have fun at work." I responded. They smiled and gave me a quick hug then got into their black Buick. I leaned against the door and groaned, sometimes there was a lot of people in this house. Lanina and Travis came out of the kitchen, his arm around her shoulders. **

**" I think it's time for them to get their own house Noleen." Lanina told me. I just looked at her; not saying anything because I knew she was right. **

**" Come on Noleen, you know they're driving you crazy. You're used to the quiet and they're not that quiet. Besides, living with so many veg vampires for so long is starting to get weird. Especially when they're eating pig and we're eating Peggy." Travis added. **

**" I can't just kick them out. They're my family." I argued. **

**" You're right, they are. And look at it this way; it's going to be so nice to have them around once you and Edward are married! Imagine, living with your in-laws! What fun!" Lanina smiled, I grimaced. That would be. . . Weird. **

**" They'll be gone by next week." I muttered. Lanina and Travis grinned and gave each other a high five. " Don't be too sad guys." I said sarcastically. " I'd hate for you to see them leave." **

**" Yeah, we're crushed." Lanina said as she took her jacket out of the closet. " We better go." I nodded my head and walked to my car. **

**" Yeah, we better run." I replied. Suddenly I just wasn't in the mood for this fun. I knew my feelings would get in the way of my work sometime. I just didn't think it'd be so soon. **


	2. Chapter 2 Here's to your enemies

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 2- Here's to your enemies **

Lanina and I walked up to the bar, a smile on our faces. The bartender turned to us and frowned, " What are you two doing here?" He asked softly. " I told you there will be no violence here, and seeing as how you guys attract danger and violence, you shouldn't be here." I sat down and laid my hands on the counter.

" We're not here to cause trouble Eden. We just want to talk to someone who happens to work here." I pointed to the man we were hunting and grinned. " Tell him to come willingly so you can spare a scene."

" Yuzria is my best worker. Why do you want him?" Eden snapped back at me. I sighed and narrowed my eyes.

" Your best worker is doing black magic in his spare time."

" That's not illegal Noleen, or did you forget?"

" Okay, number one the name's Bella now. Two, I don't care if it's illegal or not. He pissed someone off and they came to me. I want the money they're offering, therefore, I need the witch. Give him to me Eden. Or I'll cause a scene so big you'll lose ever license you have." He growled and leaned towards me, his eyes black.

" I really don't think you." He told me.

" The feeling's mutual Eden." I shooed him away and watched him get Yuzria. Lanina chuckled and patted my shoulder.

" Damn, I forgot how good you are at negotiating." She said. I nodded my head and cracked a small smirk.

" It's a gift." I said back. Yuzria's eyes locked on mine and he scowled. I waved and batted my eyelashes. Dead witch walking. He stopped in front of me and pointed to the door. I raised my eyebrow and got off the stool; then Lanina and I walked outside with him. As soon as the doors closed behind us he put his hands on his hips and whirled around.

" Who sent you?" He demanded to know. I whipped out my knives and held them tight in my hands. He glanced at them, but I didn't see a lick of fear in his eyes. " What, you're going to kill me?" He spat.

" No yet." Lanina answered. Her weapon of choice was a long sword she hid on the inside of her jacket. I stepped forward so my face was right in front of his.

" Where's Tristine?" I whispered. His eyes opened wide and he backed away.

" What do you want with her?" He questioned me. I smiled and stepped forward again.

" What? Defending your human student Yuzria? Didn't you ever learn to keep work and play separate?"

" You leave her alone! I don't care if you kill me but I won't let you take her." I felt the air shift and glanced down at his hands, they were illuminated.

" I'm surprised, you actually think that little fireball of yours is going to hit me before my knife is in your back? You poor thing." I responded. He scoffed and shook his hands out. He knew it was useless. " All you have to do is take us to her. I promise we won't do anything to her we don't have to. Take us to her Yuzria; it's in your best interest." He shook his head and illuminated his hands again.

" Never." I sighed and whipped my knives around. Lanina swung her sword around and held it high, ready to strike.

" We really don't want to have to kill you Yuzria." I cried. " Just let her go. She's using what you've taught her for evil. She's pissed off the wrong people Yuzria and she needs to pay for it."

" She wouldn't do that!" He yelled.

" Are you so sure she isn't taking you for granted? Are you absolutely positive?" Lanina asked him.

" Of course I am." He answered her.

" Come on. Hasn't she urged you to teach her more. Even though inside you know she shouldn't know it. Humans who do magic are dangerous for a reason Yuzria! They don't know what they're doing and they will sell what the know to anyone because they don't know the consequences. Eden was right in there; it isn't illegal for you to be doing black magic. But to be teaching a human is and you know that! Why are you risking yourself for her?" I yelled back at him.

" Because I love her!" He exclaimed. " I love her and I can't lose her."

" So you teach her things so she stays interested. So she has a reason to stick around? That isn't love Yuzria, and I think you know that." He fell to his knees and the flames in the palms of his hands faded out. Lanina glanced at me and nodded her head; we'd broken him. She kept her sword out but lowered it as we walked over to him. I knelt beside him and put a hand on his shoulder.

" It can't be true. . . She said she wouldn't- she said she loved me." He sobbed.

" Sometimes love isn't enough Yuzria. . . " I whispered. " Where is she?" He looked up at me, his green eyes full of sorrow.

" She works at an office, I can take you there." He whispered back. I helped him up and we walked over to my car.

" You're doing the right thing Yuzria. I'm sorry you have to though." I told him. He shook his head and lowered himself into the car. I put my knives back where they belonged and slid into the front seat. I turned the key in the ignition and drove out of the bar's parking lot. I peeked in my rearview mirror and saw Yuzria wipe his tears away, then his eyes flashed red. I knew you never wanted to piss off a powerful witch. And Tristine had done exactly that.

" Over here." Yuzria whispered and pointed to the building on my left. I pulled into the parking lot and stopped the car. " Do you need me to come in with you?" He asked. I looked at Lanina who shrugged her shoulders. I turned around and glanced at him.

" You can if you want to. But you don't have to. You can wait in the car until we're done." I responded.

" Are you going to kill her?" I sighed and brushed my hair out of my face with my fingers.

" We're going to have to." I told him quietly. " I'm sorry Yuzria." He shook his head.

" No. . . I understand. I shouldn't have-" His voice cracked and he looked out the window. " I want to come with you." He said after a couple seconds.

" Okay. . . Then let's go I guess." Lanina replied. I got out of the car and made sure it was locked before we headed into the building. Yuzria opened the door and stepped aside. I smiled softly and walked inside; I felt kind of bad to kill his girlfriend. But, that's what she got for selling what he was teaching and using it for bad. Sometimes you just can't help what you have to do. And there was the fact we were getting paid ten grand to off her. Yup, someone really wanted her dead.

I waited until everybody was in before stepping into the elevator. " Which flo-" Yuzria pushed the button and then leaned against the elevator wall. I looked at him closely; I could see how Tristine could fall for him. He was handsome. He had curly black hair and deep green eyes. I guessed he was about two hundred years old. He reeked of power. But I also got the impression he didn't gloat or use it often. ' That's kind of a shame.' I thought to myself. ' He could have a lot of people worshipping him.' The elevator stopped and we headed out. Lanina's duster trailed along the floor as we walked off to her cubicle. Tristine immediately knew something was up because she looked up and locked eyes with us in a couple seconds flat. Her eyes opened wide and she got up. She muttered something to the person next to her and came over to us. Lanina and I stopped, we knew she'd come to us so why should we walk any farther? Sure enough, Tristine practically tripped on the way over to us, I could smell her fear. It hung in the air like bad perfume.

" Yuzria. Who are your friends?" She asked. He stepped forward and grabbed her elbow.

" Come outside with us." He said angrily. I arched my eyebrow, maybe I was wrong about this man. She nodded her head and we walked back into the elevator. I could feel the shivers run down her spine as we stepped outside. " How could you?" Yuzria asked her as soon as we were out of the building. " How could you betray me like this?"

" Yuzria, I swear I didn't do-" She started but he growled and punched the building hard.

" Stop lying Tristine! I know you've done something! These women are here to kill you because of something you've done?" I wondered for a second why he didn't tell her we were vampires. I knew he could smell us, every supernatural creature had a distinct scent. I stepped forward and touched his shoulder lightly.

" Yuzria, let us deal with her. Just go back in the car." I said softly. He whipped around, his green eyes now a deep red. I hated that witches could do that. Of course we could too, it was just black when we did.

" No, I'm staying." He replied then turned back to Tristine. " You know I hate using my powers ever since. . . How could you?" He whispered. She came forward and wrapped her arms around him.

" Baby I'm so sorry." She sobbed. " Please don't let them hurt me." He shoved her away.

" You're dead to me." He snarled and then walked off. I sighed and face Tristine.

" We have to talk." I told her. She nodded her head and gulped.

" Please don't kill me. I didn't know-" I raised my hand and cut her off.

" Cut the bullshit. You knew exactly what you were doing when you sold Yuzria out. He sacrificed a lot for you. How did you two even meet in the first place?" She chuckled, a big grin on her face. I looked at her in confusion, what the hell was going on?

" What does it matter? He's done everything I wanted him too." She responded, flipping her hair over her shoulder. " All that power sitting there dormant. The least he could do was share it." My mouth dropped.

" He was sharing his power with you?" Lanina questioned her. " Damn he's an idiot." Tristine chuckled and nodded her head. Then she flipped it forward and Lanina and I flew a couple feet back. My butt landed on the hard cement. I growled softly and stood right back up. That's it, enough talking. The bitch was going down. Suddenly she was in front of my face, humans couldn't move that fast.

" You were an idiot for denying Mitchell. Now he has a whole army prepared to go against you. Tell me, guardian, are you ready for that?" She laughed and her eyes flashed black.

" What the hell are you?" I cried. She leaned forward, her mouth by my ear.

" One of your many enemies. We'll be meeting again, soon. Until then." She whispered and then she was gone. I looked at Lanina, whose eyes were as wide as mine were.

" I'm fucked." I whispered to her. She nodded her head and put her sword away.

" Yeah, you are."

**Wow, so many reviews for just the first chapter! Thanks guys! Hopefully you like this one too! I liked it! Hehe. Oh, and to answer a quick , no they can't have kids. Lanina was just saying that if the Cullens' were a real family and human, Bella's and Edward's kids would be pretty messed up. She was just joking around. Well, thanks for reading! Keep reviewing and I will see you soon. **

**Until next time, **

**Faith**


	3. Chapter 3 The tables turn

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 3- The tables turn **

I shifted uncomfortably in my chair. Yuzria was staring out the French windows in my kitchen. I didn't think he'd be safe on his own, so I made him come with Lanina and myself back to our house. I pretty much had to drag him kicking and screaming, but he came. No one else was home at the moment but him and I; Lanina went out with Travis shortly after we got back. So far, the last thirty minutes had been spent in silence. Neither one of us really had anything to say; we were both enwrapped in our own thoughts. I tapped my fingers against the table, boredom was slowly taking over me. My gaze dropped down to my engagement ring and I smiled, then I remembered I had to kick my family out. There was no way we could all live together anymore. Well, there was, but I just didn't feel like living with them once Edward and I were married. That would just be way too weird for me. I really didn't know how Alice, Jasper, Emmett and Rosalie did it.

" How long have you been engaged?" Yuzria asked me suddenly. I was startled to hear from him after his being quiet for so damn long. I turned my attention to him and had to bite back my frown; he looked so sullen and depressed.

" Two months." I answered him. He shook his head and then just looked back out the window. I sighed and leaned forward, this had to stop. He could only sulk for so long before it got annoying.

" Yuzria, I'm really sorry about what happened with Tristine. But I really need to know everything you told her. What can she do? If you were sharing your magic with her-"

" I know how dangerous it is." He snapped at me. I arched and eyebrow and gritted my teeth. I quickly stood up and moved the chair back. He looked surprised at how fast my movement was.

" Don't you snap at me! I'm trying to help you and save my own ass!" I snapped back. He looked at me, his eyes tired. Standing, he walked around the table so he was in front of me.

" I know Isabella, I'm deeply sorry. Please forgive me, it's just that's I'm tired and not very fond of being betrayed like this."

" Who is?" He nodded his head and leaned against the counter; the sun hitting his black curls just right. I tried to ignore how good he looked. I was getting married for Christ's sake!

" I taught her various things. How to move objects and locations with the mind, how to mix and read spells, how to speak Latin. . . I taught her the history of every creature. . ." His voice trailed off, but something told me that wasn't all he'd taught her.

" And?" I pushed. He smiled softly and looked me straight in the eyes.

" You're very wise, and you smell like a master vampire. Tell me, how old are you?"

" I've been a vampire for twenty years." I answered. His smile dropped and he pushed up off the counter. He inhaled deeply then a frown creased his brow.

" That's impossible. You smell-" I held up my hand and rolled my eyes. I'd heard all this before, and it was getting old.

" Yeah, I know, I smell like some centuries old vampire. But I'm not. I'm a guardian vampire, so I guess that comes with the territory." His eyes opened wide and he stepped towards me even more, leaving no space between us. I inhaled sharply and tried to ignore the very good scent radiating from him. He touched my cheek lightly; I was shocked to find the simple touch was enough to send a shiver down my spine. I could only imagine what would happen it- I mentally smacked myself for thinking what I was thinking. ' Bad girl.' I scolded myself.

" I haven't heard of a vampire guardian being alive in quite some time. No wonder you seem to be anxious about Tristine being with that man she mentioned. Mitchell I think it was?" He whispered. His voice soft and tickling my skin. I cleared my throat and pulled away before I did something very stupid. If I could've blushed, I would've been as red as a ripe tomato.

" Yeah, right." I said after a few seconds. " You still haven't answered my question. What else did you teach her?" He looked at me sheepishly and then turned from me. I could practically see the anger surging underneath his skin at the thought of her betrayal.

" How to work demon curses." I snorted and let out a breath of relief.

" That's it? Oh thank the Lord." I replied. He whirled around, confusion settling into his face and eyes.

" Whatever do you mean? This isn't a good thing Isabella. She could kill you, she could kill anything know. I told her to only use it in self defense but I doubt she'll use it for that." I smiled at sat down at the table.

" Mitchell may need her because he doesn't know those things and thinks he has an inside against me; but little does he know I already know demon curses. I use them often. You see I was raised by a very. . . Insane vampire who decided to educate me well." I told him. " If that's all you told her, then I don't need to worry anymore than usual."

" You are a very surprising vampire Isabella. Very few people can go up against demon curses." I smirked and shrugged my shoulders.

" I try, besides I'm not most people. And you can call me Bella."

" As you wish." I nodded my head once and glanced at the clock. It was only eleven and I was as bored as I was? Ew.

" So Yuzria, do you feel comfortable enough to go home or would you like to stay here?" I asked him. His eyes twinkled in the light, amusement apparent in them.

" I can hold my own Bella. There's little you know of me." He said as an answer. Another shiver went down my spine and I gulped. Licking my lips, I stood up and took my keys out of my pocket.

" Well then come on, I'll take you home." He grabbed his coat off one of the kitchen chairs and we headed out the door. Outside rain was falling down slowly. Thunder boomed in the distance. I opened the doors to my car and slid in. After he told me where he lived I revved the car to life and took off. He was right, I didn't know much of him. And I was interested to learn more.

The car ride was a fairly quiet one. We talked only to fill in some of the silence, but both of us were comfortable in the quiet. We didn't feel the need to talk. As I turned a corner a sharp scent hit me right between the eyes. I gagged and stopped the car. Smoke billowed above one of the houses on the block and Yuzria let out a yell. He manually unlocked the door and ran outside. I held my breath and unlocked my door; the smell was horrible. Yuck. I ran towards him and grabbed him before he ran into the burning house. " They burned my house down!" He yelled.

" There's nothing you can do Yuzria! Get back in my car." I yelled back. I could hear the sirens already. But that didn't mean much seeing as how I had super hearing. For all I knew, they could've been ten minutes away. He struggled to break my grip and when he realized his strength was nowhere near mine, he decided to resort to magic. Suddenly I was thrown back and he darted back over to his house. I growled and bolted back up, rushing back towards him. I threw myself onto him, careful not to land on him, and smacked his face. " Snap out of it!" I cried. " Do you have a death wish?" I saw him go to flick me off again and growled. " I didn't want to have to do this Yuzria, but you've left me no choice." I grabbed his arm and twisted it, listening to it break. He let out a cry of pain and went still, looking up at me. " Thank you." I said and pulled him away. He sat on the grass, watching his house burn as the firemen pulled up. I rolled my eyes, they were a little too late. Nothing was going to be salvageable.

" I can't believe it." He muttered. " Why would they do this?" He asked me.

" Because you were nice to me? I don't know." I responded honestly. I really didn't know why Mitchell would bother torching Yuzria's house.

" Maybe they wanted me dead." My thoughts stopped and I glared at him. Maybe. . .

" Just how powerful are you? How powerful can you be?" He looked down a the grass and shifted, wincing because of his arm.

" Pretty powerful." He told me. I let out a bitter chuckle and pounded my fist into the sidewalk. Yuzria looked at me, his eyebrow raised. " What's wrong?" He asked.

" They don't want you to help me. Mitchell wants me to be as weak as I can be when fighting him. They wanted to either kill you to stop you, or scare you away."

" Well, they didn't kill me. And they haven't scared me away. If anything they've made me more mad." I gazed into his eyes, he was telling the truth.

" Why do you trust me? I mean, why are you willing to help me? You thought I was going to kill you a couple hours ago."

" I also heard Eden call you Noleen and from what I've heard Noleen is a killing machine. You seem different, like you've changed. I want to help."

" My how the tables turn." I teased. He let out a small laugh but then winced again because of the pain. " Oh, sorry about that. I'll fix it when we get home."

" You're going to have to, all my potions and such were inside my home. I have nothing."

" Well, Edward can take you shopping for clothes and everything. And I can take you to a store to pick up materials for your spells and such."

" I would appreciate it Bella." I smiled and helped him up. I didn't want anyone seeing us and questioning us about the fire. His broken arm would be a tad hard to explain. So would the fact that my eyes are a dark red; that might throw the humans off a little. Yuzria carefully lowered himself into my car and I shut the door for him. A sudden smell waved by. I tilted my head and inhaled deeply; it was familiar. I looked around, trying to see who was there. Suddenly my gaze landed on this vampire watching me. His face was grim, and he reeked of Mitchell. I scowled and stared him down. He didn't budge. Suddenly he turned and ran off. I got into my car and just sat there for a minute. Who the hell was that and why was he working for Mitchell? I groaned and started my car; sometimes my life really sucked.


	4. Chapter 4 Destiny?

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 4- Destiny?**

**I scanned the shelves, seeing something I'd never used before I diverted my attention to that. The label said it was to make someone's hair fall out. I snickered and put it back on the shelf. Some of these spells were funny. Yuzria came around the corner, his face serious as he glanced at the rows upon rows of vials. I smirked and looked back at the shelf. " Oh hey, lavender and chamomile. Didn't you need those?" I asked him. He nodded his head and held out his basket as I dropped them in there. **

**" It's unusual, to see a vampire who's into magic." He told me. I rose an eyebrow and scooted closer to him.**

**" I told you I'm not the most common vamp." I said as an answer. He smiled and shook his head.**

**" That you aren't Isabella." He turned his attention back to the vials and I frowned slightly. I was totally just flirting. What was wrong with me! I mentally smacked myself and focused on the task at hand. Edward was getting Yuzria clothes as I was getting him some of his witchy materials. I had to admit, I sorta thought he'd at least have a broom or something. I mean something from all the legends had to be true! But he didn't have a cloak, witch hat or broom that I knew of. Maybe they were burned in his house though. . . I shook my head and cleared my throat; what a thing to be thinking about in a frigging witch store. I picked up a small black vial and read the label then winced. It was for burning limbs. Ouch. But, it could also come in handy so I dropped it in the basket for me. Yuzria looked at the vial then me, his eyebrow raised. I simply smiled and walked away; some things are better left unsaid. I turned the corner and glanced at a spell book sitting on a bookshelf, it was covered in a thick glass shield. 'Guess it's for show.' I thought to myself and tapped the glass. It wouldn't withstand a vampire fist though. " Yes it would." Yuzria said from behind me. I jumped a little and whirled around.**

**" Holy shit where did you come from? And how did you know what I was thinking." I exclaimed. He smiled and pointed to the book.**

**" Everyone comes into this store thinking they'll be the ones to get the book out. But it's programmed to zap anyone twenty feet who tries." He answered. " And I'm surprised I managed to spook a vamp." I narrowed my eyes and growled softly.**

**" You didn't spook me, I was just startled. And this isn't the store I come to, so I don't know that I can't break the book under the glass. Why do they have it under glass anyways?" **

**" Because it's not meant to be in an ordinary witch's hands. It was Merlin's spell book." My mouth dropped open a little and I looked at the book.**

**" No shit! He was real!" Yuzria laughed and nodded his head. " Wow, guess you learn new things every day now don't you." I said. I felt him tap my shoulder and turned around. He had a small pair of vampire fangs in his hand and a huge grin on his face.**

**" Look, it's you!" He cried in amusement. I rolled my eyes and snatched the teeth out of his hands.**

**" We don't have fangs." I muttered. " Stupid Bram Stocker." Yuzria chuckled, his green eyes gleaming in the store lights. "It's not funny." I told him.**

**" Yes it is." He replied in between laughs. I sighed and brushed my hair out of my face.**

**" Do you have everything?" I asked him wearily. He shook his head yes and we walked over to the counter. I went to take out some cash but he put his hand on mine and whipped out a credit card. I arched my eyebrow and put my wallet back into my pockets. " Hmm, big spender." I murmured. He smiled and took the bag from the lady at the counter. Her gaze landed on me and she looked at Yuzria, a look of disappointment on her face. I scowled and snapped my teeth at her. She jumped back slightly, but then composed herself and smoothed her clothes. **

**" Have a good day Mr. Menti." She said and walked off. I looked at Yuzria and giggled. **

**" Menti?" I said. His smile lowered and he pointed towards the door. Still chuckling, I followed him outside and threw his stuff in the trunk. I was getting into the car when my cell phone rang. I pulled it out of my pocket and flipped it open as I sat in my seat. **

**" Yello?" I said. **

**" Hey, are you almost done?" Edward asked. I smiled and turned the car on. **

**" What's it to ya?" I teased, hearing him laugh slightly on the other end.**

**" Forgive me for wanting to spend some time with my fiancée." **

**" Ah, well. I suppose I can give you that. We'll be home in ten minutes."**

**" Okay, see you then love." I made a kiss sound and closed the phone. Out of the corner of my eye I could see Yuzria smiling softly. I pulled out of the driveway and took off, going at least. . . Well, I didn't want to look at the speedometer to find out. **

**" What?" I questioned him. " What's with the smile?"**

**" You just seem happy with him." He replied. I shook my head and bit my lip down slightly.**

**" I am."**

**" Are you? Really?" I looked at him, a frown on my face.**

**" Of course I am. Why do you think I said yes when he proposed? Besides, what do you care?" I snapped. He raised his hands in surrender and leaned into his chair. **

**" I was just asking Bella. No need to get defensive." I growled and kept my eyes on the road. **

**" I'm not getting defensive." I replied. " I'm merely stating my point. Yes I love Edward, with everything I have." He closed his eyes and exhaled softly.**

**" That's good." He whispered. The road whipped before me, trees flashed before my eyes. I knew I wasn't making a mistake. I loved Edward, and I wasn't rushing into anything. We were forever, we had a love deeper than anything. I knew that. . . At least I thought I did. I hit the steering wheel in frustration, and I swear I saw Yuzria smirk a little. **

**I wrapped myself in Edward's arms and smiled. He kissed the top of my head and sighed. I'd just gotten done telling him I wanted his parents to. . . Well that I was kicking them out. " Are you sure? I mean, I don't want them to be very far away for one. And I just think it'd be weird to not live with them." I tilted my head up and kissed him softly.**

**" You'll live. And Lanina told me that there's a house in the back of ours for sale. So, through our very big meadow like backyard, there's a house for your family!" I replied. **

**" I don't know. . ."**

**" Come on Edward, we need to leave by ourselves, at least for the first couple years of our marriage. I don't want your family around to hear every little thing."**

**" By ourselves? What about Lanina, Travis and now Yuzria?" He asked me. I lowered my gaze. Damn, he had me there.**

**" Well, Lanina is like my sister Edward. She's been there for me through a lot. And this is half her house too. She helps pay the rent. So she can have Travis stay. And Yuzria's house was burned down because he's siding with me!" I stood up and waved my hands up in the air. " Can't you at least think about it?" I questioned him. He got up and put his arms around my waist, pulling me close to him.**

**" If it's what you want, then fine. We'll show them the house and they can move. But you know we'll have to visit often." I looked into his topaz eyes and smiled.**

**" Of course." I placed my arms around his neck and kissed him passionately. " I love you Edward."**

**" I love you too Bella." He whispered in my ear. " Always." I leaned back into his arms and closed my eyes; deeply inhaling the scent of him. I knew he meant it, that we were forever. We were. Like Lanina said, we were destined to be. Too bad destiny doesn't always work my way. I guess it's true, that we all decide our own fate. . . Because I was starting to have second thoughts about my destiny with Edward. **

**Okay, I know, that was a total omg moment. But dw, haha. Hope you like it :) I know I like writing it. And Yuzria is a name I made up, or that I thought of. If someone's name is actually Yuzria, awesome. haha. It just came to me. haha. Thanks for reading!!**

**Until next time,**

**Faith**


	5. Chapter 5 The past returns

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 5- The past returns**

**I sat at the table and flipped through the morning's paper as Yuzria started a pot of coffee. I groaned in exasperation as the phone began to ring. I made no move to pick it up. Ever since word got out that I was a guardian, our phone was ringing off of the hook. Yuzria studied me with careful eyes, his eyebrow arched. " Aren't you going to pick that up?" He said after a few seconds. **

**" Nope." I replied, my eyes on the paper in front of me. " I'm not. You can if you want to, but I'm sick of people calling asking for my **

**'guardianship' as they so quaintly call it." He rolled his eyes and went to pick up the phone, but it stopped ringing just as soon as his hand was over it.**

**" You're the guardian. That's what you're supposed to do." He told me. **

**" Yeah, and you're a witch. So where's the big wart on the side of your face and your old, black cat?" I replied sarcastically. He sighed and dropped into a seat in front of me. **

**" Why are you so. . . You?" I laughed and took a swig of his coffee. **

**" Because, my dear Yuzria, that's just how I am. Love me or hate me baby." He brought the cup to his lips and smiled. **

**" Ah, you're that kind of person are you?" I grinned and stood up. **

**" Why yes I am." Lanina walked in; I bit back my giggle when I saw she was wearing the pink, terry cloth robe her mother had sent her a couple years ago. Yeah, her mom knew she was a vampire and dealt with it very well. She gave me an evil glare and held up a finger. **

**" Don't, you say a word." She muttered as she swung the fridge open. I giggled a little but then cleared my throat. There was no use in pissing her off any farther. I mean, she already had to wear that god-forsaken robe. " I forgot to throw my laundry in yesterday. . . I was with Travis all day. . . And night." She mumbled. I smiled and puckered my lips to make kissing noises. " Oh shut up." Yuzria was behind us, laughing his head off. She glanced at him, her eyes narrowed and black. He smiled and drank some more of his coffee. **

**" You don't scare me." He said to her as soon as he was done drinking. She sat down beside him and growled.**

**" I should." She responded, taking a sip of the blood she'd taken out of the fridge. Yuzria turned his attention back to me; his eyes gleamed with an emotion I couldn't place. **

**" So Isabella, what events fill your day today?" He questioned. I shrugged my shoulders and placed the paper on the island counter. **

**" I have no clue. Maybe I'll drop by Edward's school at lunch and see him. Sneak in through the back door or something." I replied. And, now that I'd said it, it seemed like a very good idea. Drop in, steal a few kisses, make fun of some children and leave. I grinned and sat back down at the table. " What are you going to do?"**

**" Probably just start making some of the potions that were lost in the fire." He answered. I gave him a short 'mmhmm' and then watched as Travis came in, a towel around his waist. He grinned at me and came over to me, wrapping me in a big hug.**

**" Oh Travis!" I yelled, trying to get him away from me. " Get off me! You're getting my clothes wet." He laughed and pulled away, an amused look on his face. **

**" Twas the whole point babe." He replied. I pushed him away and stood up.**

**" Don't call me babe." I told him. He blew me a kiss then took my seat beside Lanina. She squealed but didn't do a thing to move away from him. I looked at Yuzria, a look of disgust on my face. " If Edward and me ever get that like, kill us." I told him. He grimaced and nodded his head.**

**" Gladly." I shook my head once then darted up the stairs to change. Stupid, immature vampire who can't learn to keep to himself. Suddenly, I was counting the hours 'til I could go see Edward. I felt bad for having such bad second thoughts. I knew in my heart we were supposed to be together. We just had so many obstacles to leap over before everything would be the same. Well, I knew nothing would be the same; but I was going to make it damn close. I peered in my closet and sighed. What to wear when going back to high school? Probably no leather. . . Yeah, that would draw attention. I finally decided on dark blue jeans, a red tank top to go underneath my leather jacket, and my boots. Good enough. **

**I peeked around the side of the building. I could see Edward through the big glass window facing into the lunchroom. I didn't see any teachers so I made my move. Moving as fast as wind, I blew through the space between him and me. In a matter of seconds I was seated on his lap, a smile on my face. His jaw opened in surprise, " What are you doing here?" he whispered to me. I kissed him softly then adjusted myself so I was facing his family too.**

**" I was bored so I thought I'd drop in. Whatcha up too?" I asked in return. Emmett grinned and gave me a high five, telling me I was a smooth bitch. Rosalie grinned and told me I had a good outfit on; I was actually surprised to hear that. Jasper only said a small high. Alice and Edward stayed silent. " What's wrong?" I questioned them. Alice looked at me, her eyes pained. **

**" I had a vision." She replied quietly. " That a girl was going to die. Eaten. . . By a vampire. Here. In this town." My eyebrows flew up in shock. **

**" Here? But, all vampires know I live here. They wouldn't be stupid enough to- well they would but. . . Did you see who it was?" **

**" An out of town vampire. Hungry, his eyes are pitch black. I don't know what we're going to do." I saw Edward's fists clench, but pushed it aside. **

**" What's her name? Have you met her?" Alice and Jasper nodded their heads. I turned around and saw Edward was nodding his too.**

**" She's in our English." He whispered. " Her name's Lynn Baker." I leaned against him more and sighed, blowing a piece of hair out of my face. I thought I'd gotten it all in the ponytail. Stupid hair. **

**" Well, what are we going to do? Obviously we can't let her die. . . " My voice trailed off. I wouldn't have a problem with her dying, but the rest would so I knew we had to save her. I inhaled deeply and smiled. There were some good smelling humans in here. I smelled the faint scent of rose, some jasmine, a little lilac. All very flowery smells. And so completely delicious. I inhaled again and grinned. Ooo there was even a vanilla cream one. Edward nudged me and I shook my head, moving my thought back to the dead girl. Well, not dead yet girl. I could see how black my eyes were in Alice's. She pursed her lips in frustration and bit her lip. " Oh get a grip. I have control you know." I told them all in a low voice. " What? Think I'm a savage?" Jasper looked up, his eyes open.**

**" Of course not Bella." He said to me. I gave his cheek a quick kiss and winked.**

**" Thanks Jazz, you're still cool." I turned away from them and looked at Edward. His fists were still clenched. I thought back to our biology days. He couldn't stand being in the same room as me. I smirked and wrapped my hand over his fist. I trailed my lips against the skin of his neck, hearing his breath falter. " Attracted to our little damsel in distress?" I whispered in his ear. I moved away and smiled when I saw his pitch dark eyes.**

**" Her blood. . . She smells like you did." He said to me softly. I kissed him gently and pulled away.**

**" It won't be a problem will it?" I replied sweetly, although my words were traced with venom. His fingers rubbed my hand and he shook his head no.**

**" Of course not Bella, you're mine." I stood up and lowered my head beside his.**

**" You better hope so." And then I was gone as fast as I'd came. Once outside I peered back into the lunchroom. I could hear the conversations, all of them, and listened intently. Finally, I heard the name I was looking for. Lynn. I looked at the girl and snarled. She had dark brown, wavy hair. " You better stay away from Edward." I whispered to myself. Then I took off at a fast run. There was no way I'd lose him again. Geez, now that I thought about it, this was kinda like our past. Except I wasn't the poor, defenseless human this time around. Miss Lynn was. Little did Edward know, I'd kill her myself if she came between us. **


	6. Chapter 6 Distraction

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 6- Distraction**

I watched a tiny drop of blood drip out of the werewolf's mouth. Killing them was a dirty job but someone had to do it; and that someone was me. And for twenty grand it was well worth the torn jeans and ripped tank. I pulled the sword out of the were's chest and watched as it morphed back into a man. I slid the sword back into it's sheath and licked the blood off my lips. He'd been a good fighter, but good doesn't cut it sometimes. I sighed and flipped my lighter out, it's best to burn them. Just to make sure. I watched him burn, the flames dancing in front of my eyes. My thoughts drifted to Lynn. She'd been the main topic at the dinner table tonight. It was all, 'Oh how are we going to save this poor girl?' and ' we can't let her get hurt'. It was enough to make me puke. I figured we could just tell her about us and ship her off. But no, they wanted to preserve her innocence and refrain from telling her our secret. Oh please. Made me sick. I waited until the were was just ash to leave. Then I got onto Travis's bike and drove away. Another run done, and another twenty grand in our pocket. It took me a whole five minutes to drive home; I parked the car and jogged up to the door. It was open before I'd even been able to knock. I stepped inside, my eyebrow arched suspiciously. " What's going on?" I asked Yuzria, he was the one who'd opened the door.

" You should just come in Bella." He replied. Oh, it was that good eh? I peeked around the corner and felt my blood broil. That human bitch was sitting in my living room! I chomped down on the gum in my mouth and clenched my fists.

" What's she doing here?" I asked him between my gritted teeth.

" I guess Alice's vision happened tonight. They barely got there in time." He answered. I nodded my head once and headed into the living room. Edward had his arm over the girl protectively and was whispering that everything was going to be okay. I smirked and sat down in front of them.

" No need to lie Edward darling." I said to him and turned to Lynn. " A vampire was hungry and wanted to suck your dry sweetheart. How's it feel to know you're only food to some things?" Her mouth quivered when she saw me and she pointed at my eyes.

" She's like him!" She exclaimed. I sneered at her and bared my teeth. Edward stood up and pulled me away.

" What is wrong with you!" He cried. " She's scared." I whipped my hand out of his grasp and snarled.

" I don't care if she's scared. You saved her, get her out of my house and leave her alone." I replied.

" You know as well as I do that I can't do that Bella!"

" And why not?"

" Because, she knows about us now! We can't just leave her out there to fend for herself! Besides, what if Mitchell goes after her?" I snorted and looked at him incredulously.

" You really think Mitchell would care about a pathetic human like her? Look at her, for God's sakes she's whimpering!"

" She's frightened!" He reiterated. I put my hand on my hip and smiled bitterly.

" You get off on it don't you?" I snapped.

" Excuse me!" He yelled. " What the hell are you talking about Bella?"

" You love little, simpering humans. That's why you loved me isn't it? Because I was just like her twenty god damn years ago Edward. Fuck I even smelled like her! So tell me, how much are you attracted to her Edward?" He took my hands in his and pulled my closer to him.

" Have you ever heard the song "Flesh and Blood" by Johnny Cash?" He asked me.

" What does that have to do with anything?"

" In the song it says, ' Flesh and blood needs flesh and blood, and you're the one I need.' You're all I'll ever need Bella. Always. How many times do I have to tell you? I love you for always and forever. You're mine and I'm yours." I frowned and allowed him to wrap me up in his arms. I felt him kiss the top of my head, but the frown never left my face. I was still wary. . . I knew something would happen between them, and when it did someone was going to die.

Yuzria gazed at me, his eyes piercing into mine. " What's wrong?" He questioned me. " You freaked out in there." I smiled and shrugged my shoulders, my hair falling over them. We were sitting in the kitchen after my little. . . Explosion. Edward and the family was in the living room, trying to calm down Lynn. I didn't know where Lanina and Travis were.

" I don't know. . . I just can't help thinking something's going to happen between her and him." I replied. He nodded his head and scooted closer to me.

" Bella, you shouldn't worry about Edward's love for you. Anyone with eyes can see how much he cares for you. Okay?" I shook my head and hugged him.

" Thanks Yuzria." I said.

" No problem." He put his hand on my cheek and stared into my eyes. All of a sudden I felt this. . . Spark between us. I pulled away and cleared my throat. I pointed to the living room and bit my lip.

" I should get out there." I whispered.

" Yeah you should." I stood up when the next thing I knew someone burst through the window beside us. I dropped into a low stance and growled, low and deep. The person looked at me, she was all in black. Her jet black hair looked odd on her pale face; I stared into her crimson eyes.

" Guardian." She hissed. I grinned and drew my knives out, swinging them around.

" Don't wear it out." I responded and whirled around, kicking her straight in the face. She jerked back but fell into her fighting stance quickly. She reached out and connected her fist with my face. I regained my composure immediately and charged after her. We fell to the floor in a daze. I kicked her in the stomach while she kicked me in the leg, almost popping it out of place.

" Prepare to die." She spat in my face. I snarled and bit her with my teeth. She cried out and her hand flew to her neck. I smiled and jabbed one of my knives in her throat. She stared up at me with wide eyes, then yanked it out. I got up and grabbed it off the floor where she'd thrown it aside. She jumped up and kicked me in the shoulder, that she popped out. I cried out and felt something surge within me. That's it, I was pissed. I took my other knife and whipped it out, hitting her square in the chest. She fell to the floor and held her hand to the blade, tearing it out. I walked over to her and held her head in my hands, punching her straight across the face.

" Who sent you bitch?" I sneered at her. She smiled and wiped a trail of venom off the corner of her mouth.

" Tell me, have you made sure everyone you love is here?" My eyes opened wide, she was a distraction. I dropped her and turned to Yuzria.

" There's rope in the closet, tie her up. I'll be back." I told him as I began to walk away. The other's were starting to form in the kitchen. I ignored Edward's gazes. I would kill someone if. . . I bit back the thought and grabbed my coat.

" Where are you going?" He cried out after me.

" To find out where Lanina and Travis are." I replied. " Because that whore was meant to keep me here. Which means someone's after them." And then I hopped onto his hog, and took off.


	7. Chapter 7 Healer

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 7-** **Healer **

I didn't know exactly where I was going. All I knew was that they had to be somewhere in town. And I knew I'd be able to smell them once I got close. I listened intently, desperate to hear their voices. I couldn't believe I hadn't known where they were going. I knew I would blame myself if something happened to either of them. I'd kill, I'd go crazy. . . They were my friends! They were the ones there for me when Annebelle forced me to kill; they were there to wipe away the blood and tears from my face. . . And I let them down because I didn't keep a damn eye on them. I kicked the bike into another gear and roared down the street. There would be hell to pay if something happened to my friends. Suddenly I heard something, it was faint but I could make out who's voice it was. Lanina's. I looked around and inhaled deeply, trying to find her scent. My eyes narrowed and I whirled around, heading to the right of me. It was a bit hard trying to control the bike on the gravel, but as soon as I saw Lanina I hopped off it and ran towards them. I winced when I heard the bike smash against the base of a tree, but figured I could always buy Travis a new one. His life was more important anyways. I brushed aside leaves and stepped into a clearing. A vampire was holding Travis against a tree, it looked like he was trying to pop his head off or something. I whipped out my knife and threw it, hitting him straight in the back. He dropped Travis and turned to me; his face was etched in anger. " How dense are you?" He sneered. " Knives don't work against our kind." I smiled and reached back, punching a vampire who was trying to sneak up on me ten feet away.

" Wait for it." I replied. A second later his eyes opened wide and he fell to the ground; his fist slammed into the cold earth.

" What did you do to me?" He rasped, trying to bite back the pain. I smirked and kicked his face. He flew into a tree, causing it to tip over. He was down for a little bit. I remembered Travis and immediately turned my attention back to him. I raced over to him, kicking a vampire who was trying to reach him out of the way. Lanina was still doing good on her own. I held his head up and looked into his eyes.

" You okay?" I asked him. He smiled weakly and nodded his head.

" Yeah, just trying to clear my head. I mean he did try to behead me with his bare fists." He replied. I nodded my head and helped him up.

" Yeah well, brush it off and start fighting." He shook his head once then fell into a fighting stance. I glanced around, seeing a vampire trying to sneak up on Lanina. I drew the gun out of his holster on my thigh and aimed directly at his chest. Squeezing the trigger, I watched the bullet travel to the vampire, then finally make contact with his chest. He held his hand to the wound and looked at me, his eyes wide. I watched as he dropped the ground; his hand still clutching his chest. " You okay?" I yelled to Lanina. She gave me a thumbs up and turned back to her fighting. There was at least ten vampires left. Getting sick of this, I just started popping anything that moved. When my clip ran empty I finally looked to see how many I'd gotten. I shook my head, not to bad. Six of the ten were down. I smiled and faced Travis; everything was turning out to be okay.

Then my world turned to slow motion. I saw the vampire I'd stabbed pull an arrow out, aiming it at Travis. I tried to push him out of the way but it was too late.

I watched in shock as Travis fell to the ground, the arrow sticking out of his chest.

" NO!" Lanina yelled and beheaded the vampire she was fighting. I just stood there in shock. I'd seen what was on that arrow before it was shot; I knew what just hit Travis.

" Dead man's blood." I whispered. " Oh my God." I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply. I could hear the venom flowing out of Travis' chest. I opened my eyes and swallowed. Lanina was holding Travis' head in her hands, repeating his name over and over. He was trying to console her, but I knew he was fading fast. The blood was strong on that arrow tip, it reeked of staleness. It was poison to our bodies. Suddenly anger surged within me. I focused my attention on the shooter and clenched my fists. Tossing my gun aside, I stormed over to him. I grabbed him by the shirt and lifted him off the ground. " You better pray I can find a way to save him. Or I swear to God I'll-" He held up his hand in annoyance. I smiled bitterly, reached up, and snapped it. He gritted his teeth in pain.

" You can save him. Mitchell has the antidote. If you agree to be his alliance, he'll hand it over to you no problem." It was my turn to grit my teeth.

" How about this? You tell Mitchell he gives me the antidote or I rip him and all his followers to pieces." He tilted his head back with laughter, which only made me that much more angry.

" How strong do you think you are?" He snarled. I growled and threw him on the ground. Then I went over to each of the vampires I'd shot and beheaded them. Their venom spilled into the earth. I wiped a tiny drop of it off my cheek then walked back over to him.

" Guess what asshole. I don't need you." And then I swung Lanina's sword, watching his head roll off his shoulders. I dropped the sword and walked over to Travis and Lanina.

" Please, Noleen you have to do something!" Lanina cried. I watched Travis' eyes flutter closed as rain began to fall from the sky. It fell down our faces, making us look like we were crying. . . How appropriate. I let out a cry and put my hands on his chest.

" Come on Trav, hang on!" I exclaimed. " You're stronger than this!" He kissed my hand and smiled.

" Kick his ass Nol, you make him suffer for me." He said softly. I shook my head fervently and wiped the rain off his face.

" No, you're going to help me kill him Travis! Come on, open your eyes damn it!" He did, and turned to Lanina.

" I love you." He whispered. " I really do. I thought I'd never get over Noleen. . . But you. . . you're just as perfect as she is. I love you." He whispered to her and kissed her deeply.

" Travis please. . . Please baby, hold. I'm begging you. Please." She cried, the rain streaming down her face. His hand dropped down to hers and he shuddered. My eyes opened wide. How was the blood affecting him like this already! I held his hand in mine and felt his face. He was getting colder than even we were.

" Travis!" I yelled. " Come on stay awake! Stay with me! I need you damn it! You're one of my best friends!" All of a sudden a warm feeling surged through me. I looked down and saw my hand glowing a faint yellow. My eyes opened wide in surprise. What the fuck was going on? I watched as the light traveled throughout his whole body. The wound from the arrow closed and his body temperature went up a few degrees, to normal. He opened his eyes and took a deep breath.

" I'm alive." He whispered. " Holy fuck what did you just do!" He yelled. I tore my hand from his and shrugged my shoulders. I really had no idea. I scooted back and looked up, letting the rain fall over me.

" You saved him." Lanina said quietly. Then threw her arms around me and hugged me tightly. " Thank you so much Noleen." I patted her back and smiled weakly.

" Yeah no problem." I whispered back to her. Biting my lip, I stood up and looked at the thick area of woods behind us. " Umm, Travis. I sorta trashed your bike trying to get to you." I said. He turned to me, his eyes blank.

" You what?" I smiled softly and chuckled.

" Well. . . It's a funny story really. . . Okay it's not. Your bike collided with a tree while I ran to save your life. I'll buy you a new one." He grinned and nodded his head.

" Yes you are." 

" Geez, I just saved your life. Think you'd be a little more appreciative." I muttered. Now to find out what the hell was going on with me. And deal with that bitch who ruined my window. . .

Sorry it's so-o short. I just wanted to end it there. Thought that was a sufficent ending. I'm surprised that some of you want Bella to end up with Yuzria. Wow. I was worried people would hate him haha. Well, the next chapter will be longer I hope haha. Thanks for reading and remember to review! It makes me happy :)

Until next time,

Faith


	8. Chapter 8 Reign over us?

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 8- Reign over us?**

Everyone was staring at me. I felt like I was a circus freak or something. I sighed and rolled my eyes; the silence was getting to be too much. No one had said a thing after Travis told them I'd saved him. And Lynn was sitting beside Emmett, a scared look on her face. She was still scared I was going to eat her. The way things were going, I just might eat her. I smirked, showing just a small hint of my teeth. She shuddered and scooted next to Emmett more. He gave me an evil eye, silently telling me to knock it off. I growled too low for the human to hear; he stopped giving me the eye after that. I glanced at Edward, he was still stiffly beside Alice. We still hadn't talked ever since our fight and half assed make up. I didn't want to talk. I wanted to just eat the problem, then everything would be fine. Sure Edward would be mad for a little bit, but he'd get over it. Carlisle cleared his throat, which tore me away from my thoughts. I looked at him and arched my eyebrow. " So. . . What exactly happened?" He asked. I scoffed and stood up; this was getting a tad ridiculous.

" I was angry. I put my hand on his and told him to hold on. That everything would be fine. And suddenly this, this light appeared and spread over him. The wound closed and he jumped up like a frigging daisy in Alaska. He's fine. The end. Why are we spending so much time thinking about this? I'd really rather go interrogate the chick tied up in the kitchen if you don't mind." I replied.

" We need to talk about this Bella." Esme added, her eyes wary. She was scared of me, well scared of what I could do. I smiled sweetly and sat back down.

" Fine. . . Talk." I responded, waving my hand to everyone. " Tell me your ideas, tell me what's happening inside my cold, dead body. Please! Enlighten me!" Rosalie rolled her eyes.

" Do you have to be so sarcastic? I mean really Bella! Don't you get tired of it?" She asked.

" Not one bit." I replied. She chuckled and snuggled against Emmett, giving Lynn a glare. At least I wasn't the only one who didn't like her. Of course, I should've known Rosalie wouldn't. I mean she hated me when I was human. It's only fair she despise Lynn too. I smirked, that thought made me happy. " Now. . . Is there anything you guys have to add? Or may I please go slap that woman until she tells me what I want to know?"

" Go on." Carlisle said wearily. I hopped up and bolted into the kitchen. No need to tell me twice. Yuzria was still in there, his green eyes trained on the girl. She struggled trying to get out of the ropes. The moment I stepped onto the tile he looked up and smiled. I stopped, damn that was hell of a smile. I found it in me to keep going and trudged forward.

" Have you gotten anything out of her yet?" I questioned him. He shook his head no and frowned.

" She's rather. . . Well she's as stubborn as you." He replied with a smirk. I smiled and pinched his cheek.

" You have only one of those a year. You just used it." I said to him. He chuckled and held up his hands in surrender. I turned to the girl, my hand on my hip. " I know it was Mitchell who sent you. Why? Why distract me? He should've known I would've figured out what you were. He must not care about you that much, cause he sent you on a suicide mission. You're lucky you're still alive." She spat at my feet and growled.

" Kill me if you want to. You'll get yours in the end." She snarled. I smirked and looked at the wall. Boy she was a bitch wasn't she. I swung my fist into the side of her face, hearing at least one bone crack underneath the weight of the punch.

" What's he planning?" I asked as soon as she regained herself from the punch.

" Why should I tell you?"

" Because I'm going to kill you either way. So, why not help me before your head falls to my floor." Something struck her eyes, I recognized the emotion. Fear. And a lot of it. I knelt down and smiled. " Ooo, you're scared. You reek of it. You're a newbie and you don't want to die do you?" She hardened up and just stared at me. Yuzria cleared his throat, tearing my attention away from our. . . Guest. I looked at him in confusion. " What?" I asked. He leaned down so he was close to my ear.

" Maybe we should keep her alive. We could use her." He whispered.

" That's why she's alive now. If she doesn't start talking, some heads are gonna start rolling. Capice?" He shook his head and sat back in the chair. " Now, tell me your name." I asked the girl as soon as I focused my attention back to her.

" Lisa." She replied.

" Okay, well Lisa, let me tell you how things work in this house. You help us, we help you by not killing you."

" I can't. He'll kill me." She said quietly. " If you return me to him and he finds out I said anything. . . He'll kill me." I adjusted myself so I was balancing on my feet, still kneeling in front of her.

" You can stay here. I'll protect you. But in order for me to give you a chance, you need to throw me a frigging nice, juicy ass bone." I told her sternly. She nodded her head and looked away from me.

" Then just kill me." I scoffed and stood up. I couldn't believe this. I was offering her protection!

" What! Are you that scared of him? I can help you Lisa!" I reiterated.

" No, you're the enemy. I can't help you." She said coldly.

" Exactly what is Mitchell telling his 'troops'?" I questioned through gritted teeth. She looked at me once again, her eyes hard and hiding all emotion inside them.

" That you mean to kill everyone who won't side with you. That you want to bring about the end of all vampires' freedom and reign over them." I scowled and punched the wall. She jumped in her seat, but quickly regained her composure.

" That asshole!" I yelled. " He said if I joined him I could be a queen. I said no! I said I was going to go my own little way and try to ignore this whole guardian thing as best as I could. He brought this on himself and he's using what he was offering me as his fuel against me! That bastard!" Yuzria grabbed my arm and spun me around. I glanced at his hand holding me and then back up to his face. " That was a very stupid thing to do." I pulled my arm away and breathed. " Brave too."

" You need to calm down. You cannot get this angry every time you find out Mitchell is lying about you." He said to me. I licked my lips and nodded my head.

" Yeah I know. It just pisses me off!" Lisa looked astonished.

" You don't mean to reign over us? You mean to let us continue to be free?" She asked. I snorted and sat down in a chair.

" As long as they don't kill too many people or become one of my runs-yes." I responded.

" He lied?" She said quietly. " It couldn't be."

" I hate to break it to you sweetie, but he did. Whether you want to admit it or not." She looked up at me, biting down on her lip.

" He wants to strike when you least expect it. He'll go after anyone you know, just to get to you. He wants to kill everyone close to you. . . Then leave you. He wants to cause-"

" The ultimate loss. So I'll kill myself. He wants me to finally give in, something I don't do very well." I finished for her. She shook her head once and jerked in the ropes.

" Will you let me out now?"

" If you don't try to kill anyone and don't run off."

" I won't." I swiftly cut the ropes and she stood up. " Thank you. . . Can. . . Can I really stay here? Do I have to go back?" I stared into her eyes, she really was scared of him.

" Yeah, you can stay here. We have the room." Lanina walked into the kitchen, her arms crossed across her chest. She looked at me, a smile on her face.

" Come on, I'll show you to a room." She told Lisa. Lisa followed her out of the kitchen and up the stairs. Yuzria grinned and stood up, his green eyes bright and gleaming with amusement.

" Is the big, cold Isabella turning soft?" He joked. I hit his arm, soft of course, and rolled my eyes.

" You wish." I replied. He laughed and walked out of the kitchen. I leaned against the table and sighed. Was I getting soft? I glanced down and saw the sword on the island counter. I needed to wash it. I walked over to it and picked it up, swinging it around my head and smiled. The thrill of the battle called to. No, I wasn't soft. Not yet, not ever.

**I know, I know, another short chapter. I's sorry but I just wanted to end it there. haha. More to come! And I'm glad you like Yuzria!**

**Until next time, **

**Faith**


	9. Chapter 9 My house, my rules

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me. And don't fear the reaper belongs to blue oyster cult. **

**Chapter 9- My house, my rules**

I held my hands up in front of me and studied them in the light of the kitchen. How had I done it? How had I saved Travis? It seemed impossible, like maybe I'd just imagined it. . . But I knew I didn't. I closed my eyes and listed to the radio. Yuzria turned it on so he could listen to music while making his little potions. Don't fear the reaper was currently playing; I hated to admit it, but Yuzria had good taste in music. I tapped my fingers to the beat and sang along softly. A couple moments later Yuzria joined in, his voice soft also. I smiled and opened my eyes. He was mixing something in a big copper pot. I stood up and walked over to him. " Watcha making?" I asked. He looked up and smiled softly.

" You don't really want to know." He replied. I leaned on the counter and arched an eyebrow.

" What? Think it'll scare me? Come on, try me." He sighed and put the spoon down.

" It melts flesh." I winced, looking at my arm. I could picture the flesh melting off and shuddered.

" Off of anything? Any creature?" I questioned. Better to be safe than sorry with no skin.

" Yup."

" Remind me never to piss you off." I murmured. " Because I like my skin." He chuckled and waved his hand in a 'don't worry' fashion.

" You have nothing to fear Bella." He told me. I sat on the stool beside the island counter and just watched him make his potions. He looked so serious; I had to bite back my laughter as he muttered to himself and made a stern face. I couldn't help it. A small chuckle escaped from my lips. A tiny smirk played on his lips, but he didn't look up from his concoction. " What are you laughing at?" He asked me.

" You just look mad. It's kinda funny." I said to him. His smirk grew and he shrugged his shoulders.

" Doing spells by memory is very frustrating."

" I can imagine." All of a sudden Edward and Lynn walked in. I frowned and stepped away from the island. " What's she still doing here?" I sneered. He sighed and walked over to me, pulling me to the side with him.

" Me and my family don't think she should be by herself. What if Mitchell goes after her? That puts not only her, but her entire family at stake." He whispered. I rolled my eyes and took his hand off my shoulder.

" Edward. . . Honey. . . I don't care. I really don't." I replied. His topaz eyes stared into mine, burning a hole through me.

" You don't mean that."

" Umm, yes I do." He groaned and threw his hands in the air.

" I don't get you Bella! I really don't! You let someone who was your enemy stay but you won't let an innocent, young girl stay?" I put my hands on my hips and pursed my lips in thought.

" Yeah, that sounds about right." I responded after a couple minutes. " Besides, this is my house. Lanina and me decide who stays and who goes. Lisa stays, Lynn goes."

" Why?" He exclaimed.

" Well, Lisa doesn't have a big, fat crush on you to start with!" I yelled, starting to get angry. How could he not see my point of view?

" Lynn doesn't have a cru-"

" Oh please Edward! How dense are you? The bitch hangs around you all the damn time! I know she's undressing you with her eyes every chance she gets and I am so-o-o close to ripping them out!" I snapped.

" She's scared."

" Oh yeah, and what comforts her? Your big arms wrapped around her. Well guess what mister, your arms belong to me!" I cried. He stared at me for a couple seconds and then busted out in laughter. My mouth dropped open in shock; he was laughing at me? I growled and pushed his shoulder. He fell back a couple steps but was still laughing. " What's so fucking funny?" I asked him.

" I just cannot believe you're jealous!" He cried, still laughing.

" Yeah? So I am. Why are you laughing at me?" I answered, a little pout on my face. I hate pouting; but if there every was a time to, this was that time. He walked back in front of me and put his hand on my cheek, stroking it slightly. I fought the urge to push it away only because it felt really good.

" I'm not laughing at you. I'm laughing at the absurd notion you seem to have. Bella, my love, Lynn is a friend to me and nothing more. How many times must I tell you? I love only you." He pressed his lips to mine in a deep kiss. I pulled back and sighed. He looked so good. . . I wanted to just grab him and drag him upstairs. But I couldn't do that, I was still angry. . .Kinda.

" Fine. Your little human can stay. But she does one thing wrong, I'm drinking her." I looked at Lynn and smiled sweetly. Her heart began to beat faster, which made me smile even more.

" Thank you." He told me and kissed me again. He pushed me against the wall and nipped my lip with his teeth. I smiled and threw my hands over his neck.

" Sure." I said once the kiss was broken and we were just staring at each other. " But remember, one wrong move and she's mine." He smirked and pecked my nose with his lips then walked over to Lynn to tell her the "good" news. " Sleep with one eye open Lynn!" I yelled to her. Her eyes widened and she let out a tiny whimper. Edward scowled and took her out of the kitchen before she gave herself a heart attack. I snickered and walked back over to Yuzria. He was laughing while stirring another potion.

" You're horrible." He told me as he stirred. I grinned and shook my head in agreement.

" What can I say? I wanna keep her on her toes. Besides, it's so-o-o much fun to see her wince." I replied with a laugh. He shook his head and looked at me.

" I agree with that. Now, do you need anything made while I'm cooking it up?" I showed him which potions I could use some more of and then kicked back to relax; watching him make potions was oddly calming. The radio still played in the background, a new song was on now. Something about the lips of an angel. . .

A couple hours later I was sitting at the table with Yuzria. We were putting labels on the potions. I'd hate to melt someone's flesh off on accident while throwing what I thought was a memory bending curse. Tristine ran through my mind at that moment. I put the label on and placed the vial in my hand to the side. I peeked at Yuzria, his curly hair was falling over his eyes slightly. I had too, I had to ask. . . " You think you'll be okay? If you see her?" I spoke up. I didn't need to say her name, he'd know who I was talking about. He glanced up at me, his green eyes full of sorrow.

" I don't know." He replied quietly. " I'm sure I will be." I nodded my head, I thought he would be too. I mean, if he could willingly sit there and melt someone's flesh off he could take seeing Tristine.

" So. . . Are your parents still alive? Or, like how does that work?" There was so much about him I wanted to know, I figured I'd start with that.

" No. They were both human." My eyebrows furrowed in confusion. He saw that and put the vial in his hand down, getting ready to explain. " A gene was passed down in my mother's family."

" Like. . . A gene that allowed you to be a witch?" He chuckled and nodded his head.

" That is the easiest way to say it yes. Some people in my mother's line received the gene, some didn't."

" You were one of the lucky ones." I teased. " So. . . How long will you live?" He folded his hands on the table and shrugged his shoulders.

" Until someone happens to kill me. I don't catch diseases or get sick, but if someone were to. . . Say shoot me-"

" If it were fatal you'd die." I finished for him.

" Yes."

" Well, do you age?" I questioned him, hoping I wasn't sounding like a inquisitive five year old.

" Not unless I choose to. I've been in this state for a century so far."

" Wow. . . So, you and me are pretty similar. Except you can age and you can have children. You can have children can't you?"

" Yes I can." A knock on the door tore me from our conversation. I stood up and walked over to the door, swinging it open. Upon seeing who it was, I drew my knife out and held it up to the throat of the person standing in front of me.

" What are you doing here?" I growled.

**Well, it's a bit longer lol. Hope you enjoyed it! Now, to clear up some questions. Lisa is not Lynn, no. Lisa is the person sent to distract Bella while Travis and Lanina were being attacked. Lynn is the human. Hope that helped Elven :) Also, never fear. Bella & Edward WILL be together at the end of this story. But, a lot is going to happen in between. So, stay tuned for all that drama haha. Hope you enjoyed that cliffie ;). Thanks for reading and reviewing! Keep it up haha. **

**Until next time,**


	10. Chapter 10 The look in your eyes

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 10- The look in your eyes**

Edward stepped behind me and put an arm around my waist protectively. I growled and stuck the knife out farther. Laurent threw his hands up in surrender. " Hey, I should be the one who's pissed here!" He cried. " Why didn't you tell me you were a guardian?" I rolled my eyes and lowered my knife. I stepped back and let him walk in. He wasn't a danger to me, because he knew if he made one wrong move I'd be on him faster than Moses on water after his forty day hike in the desert.

" One, it is none of your business Laurent. Two, I didn't even know until about six months ago. Why do you care?" I asked him in reply. He sighed and sat down on the couch.

" Because, these are things a friend should know." I smiled and stood in front of him, my arms crossed.

" All my friends do know." His put his hand over his heart and gasped.

" That hurt me Bells. We're at least acquaintances."

" No. . . We're not."

" Yes we are."

" No, we are not. You are a squealer who gives me information so I don't kill you." He shrugged his shoulders and grinned.

" That's a great quality of a friend. I fear you so you know I'd never betray you." A tiny chuckle slipped out and he pointed at me.

" Hah! See! You do like me. Admit it." I shook my head and smirked.

" Maybe I'd be a tad disappointed if you happened to die. Sure. I'll admit that. Now, tell me why you're here." Yuzria walked in, his eyebrow raised as he stared at Laurent. I'd tell him who he was later. First, I wanted to see what he knew.

" Well, one of Laurent's goons came by me. Apparently he'd building quite an army against you. He wanted me on his side."

" Are you?"

" No. . . I told him if there's going to be some kind of war, that I'd want to be on the winning side." I grinned and laughed. " That is, if you want me."

" Sure Laurent. . . Why not." He jumped up and clapped his hands.

" So, when do we get to kick some ass?"

" When he makes a move." Lisa came down the stairs and stopped, her eyes wide.

" Laurent?" She whispered. His head whipped up to hers and the smile was just wiped right off. I arched my eyebrow, this was weird. Lisa brushed a piece of her hair behind her ear and smiled timidly.

" Lisa." He breathed and walked over to her. " What are you doing here? I haven't seen you in. . . God, I don't know."

" Two years." She said quietly in reply. He nodded his head and stepped closer to her.

" How have you been?" He asked.

" Okay I guess. . . You?"

" Okay." I stepped between them and smiled.

" Hi, member me?" I chuckled and pointed at them. " How, do you two know each other?" Laurent smiled and I saw him look over Lisa slowly. I connected the two dots and stepped back. " Why don't you guys. . . Go upstairs and talk." I told them. They nodded their head and walked up the steps pretty fast. I turned back to everyone in the room and sighed. " Wow, this house is filling up fast ain't it." I glanced at Edward, who sighed and nodded his head. He looked at his family and smiled weakly.

" Mom, dad. . ." He started. I rolled my eyes and sat at the edge of the chair; this was going to take a while. " Bella and I were talking about it. . . And we think it'd be best for you guys to, well. . . Find another house. I guess there's one right in the back of ours that you could move into. We really think this is for the best-" Carlisle stood up and walked over to him. He put his hand on his shoulder and smiled.

" We've already bought it. We had the same idea." He told Edward. He let out a breath of relief and hugged him. " Besides, Bella has many. . . Friends, we figured you two would need the room."

" Thanks dad." He whispered. I bent my head to him and thanks and fake yawned.

" Wow, look at the time. . . I am going upstairs and laying down." Edward smirked and followed me up the steps. We both had the same idea in mind. Of course, everyone else probably knew too. But I didn't care. They'd be out soon enough.

I put my head on Edward's bare chest and smiled. The skin felt good underneath my fingers. He ran his fingers through my hair and sighed. An image popped into my head that instantly made me laugh. It was of him smoking an after-sex cigarette. I don't know what made me think of it. But I ended up cracking up. He put a finger on my chin and tilted my head up so he could see my face. I tried to bite back my laughter, but it wasn't working very well. " What are you laughing at?" He asked me, a small chuckle in his voice. I shook my head and put my head back on his chest.

" Nothing Edward." I sighed. " Nothing at all." I felt him nod his head and closed my eyes. I wished I could feel his heartbeat . . . Hear it beat softly. All of a sudden Edward started singing my lullaby. I listened to him, his voice perfect.

" I love you Bella." He whispered once he'd finished.

" I love you too Edward." I whispered back. I looked up at him and kissed him. But something was nagging at me. Some tiny thing at the back of my head. I tried to push it away, but I couldn't. I looked in his eyes, and the nagging feeling grew. The look in his eyes. . . I'd seen him give it to Lynn that same day. . . I sat up and stared at him. I was sure of it. I was sure I'd seen him look at Lynn the same way he was looking at me. With. . . Love and admiration. I threw the sheet over me and stood up. His face grew serious and he sat up.

" Bella? What's wrong?"

" You. . . That look. . . In your eyes." Was all I managed to get out before the bathroom door was slammed and I was standing in front of my mirror. Edward pounded on the door.

" Bella! Bella talk to me! ISABELLA!" He yelled. I ignored him. Why did I keep doing this? Why did I keep thinking that he was going to cheat on me? I knew he loved me! ' But sometimes love isn't enough.' That little voice in my head spoke up. I tried to shove it away but it wouldn't go. ' That look shows he feels something. He's not telling you everything. Remember twenty years ago. . . He broke your heart.' It whispered. I let out a growl and pushed my fist into the mirror. The glass shattered around me. I stared at the broken pieces, my mouth open. What was happening to me? I was falling apart all over again.

**Eh, really short chapter. I know, I'm sorry. It's just one of those filler ones. lol. Hopefully it was good. Thanks for reading and reviewing! Keep it up! More to come!**

**Until next time, **

**Faith**


	11. Chapter 11 Show the monster inside you

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 11- Show the monster inside you**

Lanina looked at me, not pressuring me to talk but letting me know she was there if I wanted to. I sighed and pushed away the bottle of blood in front of me. She'd even warmed it for me, but I wasn't in the mood for it. She linked her hands together and leaned on the table. " What's up?" She asked me, sounding worried. " I haven't seen you like this in a long time." I nodded my head and decided to take a sip of the blood, to make her feel better. To make her worry less. Yuzria was sitting at the island counter, pretending to read a spell book he'd died. I knew he was pretending, but I didn't care. Let him listen in.

" I just, can't shake this feeling that something's going to happen between them." I whispered to her. " Tell me I'm crazy. Tell me that he'd never do that." I looked up at her, and upon seeing her face, I knew she couldn't. Because he'd already hurt me once twenty years ago. What would stop him from doing it again?

" I don't think he'd plan it." She said sheepishly. I shook my head in agreement and took another sip of the blood. I wanted to kill something. That'd make me feel better. Or even better. . .

" We should probably start training with them again. I wouldn't want them to be rusty." I spoke up. Lanina's eyes brightened. She sat up and took our weapons out of the closet for them, then called them down. We gathered outside, it was raining but we didn't care. No one stopped a war because of rain so we weren't going to stop training because of it. Lanina and I held our swords tight in our hands. Everyone else had one, not that they'd do much good. But with the stuff we'd put on them later, it'd at least slow the vamps down. " Quiet!" I yelled. Everyone stopped talking and looked at me. I ignored Edward's gazes and looked at Lynn sitting on the steps. Laurent and Lisa were here too, so was Yuzria. Although they didn't need as much training as everyone else. I knew Laurent was a good fighter, not great, but he wouldn't get himself killed. Travis was picking some things up at Bob's. Lanina stepped aside, she usually let me teach. She was there to help them practice. I waved the sword in front of me and smiled. " Always now what your opponent's next move is going to be. If you're too slow, you're dead. There's not much more to it. Laurent, get your ass up here." He smiled and stepped up, waving his sword like I had. We fought a couple rounds, I'd managed to stab him twice. He got me once, but that was only a nick.

" If you don't know what's going to happen you can't plan your next move." Lanina said to them. " Always be thinking one step ahead. It's what'll keep you alive in the long run." They all nodded their heads and Emmett stepped forward.

" Come on Bella." He teased. " Let's roll." Laurent stepped back in the line, next to Lisa. I smirked and clinked my sword against his. My third one was a hit to his heart. He looked at the sword with a disapproving look. " Damn." He whispered. I chuckled and pulled it out.

" Don't be cocky, that'll kill you too. You know what-" I put my finger to my lips and thought for a minute. Emmett wasn't a sword guy, he was more brute force. " Drop the sword." I told him. He did just that and crouched down in a fighting stance. I shook my head approvingly and dropped down too. He came towards me and pushed me to the ground, I flipped him off and stood up. We fought for a couple more minutes before I was satisfied. " You don't need a sword." I said to him. " Just remember to watch out for your enemy and you'll be fine. You work better with your hands then a weapon." He smiled and gave me a high five. I rolled my eyes and pointed to Alice. She walked up, her sword looking oddly out of place. I took it out of her hands and replaced it with a small knife. It suited her better. " You're fast and you're small, you can get behind them and stick that in the back of their neck easier than fighting them one on one with the sword."

" Will this work as well?" She questioned. I nodded my head and showed her a few tips then sent her back to line. I pointed to Esme and watched her walk forward.

" First off all, stop looking so motherly on the battlefield. People will underestimate you and target you more because they'll think you're weak." She nodded her head and her eyes instantly blackened. Well, it helped. " Second of all, hold your sword higher." She lifted the sword and crouched down, hissing. I smiled and sent her back to line, she'd be fine. I knew Carlisle knew how to fight so I passed him up. Next was Rosalie. She stepped up and smirked. She had both a knife and gun. I figured she'd like shooting people.

" I know who you'd like to shoot." She joked as she stopped in front of me. I chuckled and we both looked at Lynn. Next we fought, she met each of my blows except one. She'd learned fast. I let her go back to the line and pointed to Jasper. He walked up and grinned. He had a sword but he also had his power that would work.

" Okay, remember, mellow them out and then strike." I told him. He nodded his head and we exchanged a few blows. He was good too. Met every single one of my blows and even impressed me with a few new moves. I sent him back to line, one more Cullen left. " Yuzria." I whispered. I didn't want to deal with Edward yet. He nodded and stepped forward. His eyes gleaming in the dark night. He raised his sword and we began to fight. Soon it became sort of like a dance. The rain fell around us. I concentrated hard, he was good. Finally we stopped, he was breathing hard. His face was directly in front of mine, his eyes staring into mine. I could see Edward clenching his fists, but didn't care. Our swords were pressed together. " You're good." I told him.

" Thank you. It's a complement coming from such a good fighter." He responded. I smiled and nodded my head. He walked back in the line and put his sword away in the sheath. Lisa walked forward and bowed her head. She put her sword on the ground and looked back up at me.

" I don't know how to use one." She told me sheepishly. I picked it up and put it in her hands, then showed her how to hold it.

" Grip it tight, you don't want it flying out of your hands." She nodded her head and moved with me. I showed her the simplest moves that she'd need to know. " Don't worry, you'll be fine." I assured her. She went back in the line and smiled up at Laurent. He squeezed her waist and kissed the top of her forehead. " Edward." I said softly. He stepped forward, anger etched in his eyes. I knew why; I also could care less at the moment. He raised his sword and we began to fight. The rain fell down harder and harder with each passing second. We fought longer than I had with anyone else. My anger started to come out bit by bit.

" You accuse me of falling for Lynn, while you're appearing a little chummy with Yuzria." He growled as we fought. His voice mixing with the thunder. I saw the danger in his eyes. " Tell me Bella, trying to get back at me?" He asked.

" Oh please, how low do you think I'd stoop?" I replied, my sword pushing his away from me. " Besides, Yuzria is a friend. Hell, he's here for me more than you nowadays. Mr. I need to watch Lynn or she may die!" I cried out. I could see everyone was getting kind of uncomfortable. Lanina ushered them inside and closed the door. We were alone.

" Do you blame me? She very well may!" He cried back, dropping his sword. Now we were just standing there in the rain. " Why can't you trust me!" I groaned and pushed him.

" Because you left me once for no reason, maybe you'll leave again! I'll always think you're going to leave me because of that one mistake you made!" I yelled. " You broke me! You killed me! You- UGH!" I pushed him again and this time he fell to the ground. " Fight me damn it! Tell me that you'd never do it again! WHY AREN'T YOU FIGHTING BACK!" I screamed. He stood up and held my wrists with his hands.

" There's no use in fighting-" I groaned again and pushed him down, scratched him with my nails and threw him down onto the ground.

" I'm sick of your preaching ways Edward. Come on, let out the monster in you. Don't fight it!" I told him. He shook his head.

" Never-"

" THEN WHY DID YOU THINK YOU'D BECOME A MONSTER WHEN YOU WERE WITH ME? THAT'S WHY YOU LEFT WASN'T IT? BECAUSE YOU WERE AFRAID YOU'D BE SOME MONSTER? SHOW ME THE MONSTER! SHOW ME!" I didn't care who could hear me. I was pissed and I needed answers. He just sat there, watching me with those topaz eyes. I stood up and looked at him. " You can't can you? Because there never was one. So why did you leave me Edward? Because you didn't want me to be hurt?" My words were stumbling over some dry sobs. He stayed silent, finally speaking after a few moments.

" It was harder when you were alive." He whispered.

" Yeah, and you couldn't take the struggle. You fucking wimp." I sneered and started to walk away when he pushed me down. His eyes black. I knew what he was doing. He was tearing down his safety net and becoming what he hated. A full fledged vampire. He was giving into the darkness that lived in each of us for me. He picked me up and shoved me into a wall, kissing me rough and biting my lip hard with his sharp teeth. His lips traveled down my neck. Each move by him was filled with need. A need to make me understand and to show me I was in fact the only one for him. I pushed him away and threw him down on the wet grass; by now both of us were past soaked. His eyes were still black as he stood up and picked me up. I began to get worried, what if I never got him back? Once you give in. . . It's hard to climb out.

" Do you believe me now?" He whispered in my ear. I nodded my head and gazed at him. His eyes slowly turned topaz again and he stormed into the house. I just sat there, tilting my head towards the rain, I opened my mouth and gladly let it in. I closed my eyes. Suddenly I felt something, that same heat that'd come when I saved Travis. I looked down and my eyes opened wide. It looked as if my hands were on fire. I jumped up and wiggled them around, but they wouldn't go out.

" What the hell, go out!" I screamed, and they did. I arched my eyebrow in confusion and looked around. What the hell just happened? I walked back inside the house and fell to the ground. Yuzria ran over to me and caught me before I fell to the ground. I looked up at him with confused eyes.

" Bella, what's wrong?" He asked.

" I don't know." I whispered. I felt so tired all of the sudden. I just wanted to close my eyes and drift. All my energy was spent. The last thing I remembered was Yuzria carrying me up to my room. Then everything turned black.

I opened my eyes and got grounded before springing up and whipping my head around violently. Had I fallen asleep? That's impossible! I put a finger to my neck trying to find a pulse, nope, still dead. So then why? My eyes landed on a figure sitting in the room. I reached under my pillow slowly; I kept a knife under there. Call my crazy, but it's better to be safe than sorry as the saying goes. I grabbed it and flicked on the light. It was only Yuzria, he'd fallen asleep in the chair. I let out a breath of relief and got up. I shook him softly, trying to wake up. He opened his eyes and gasped, then remembered where he was and calmed down. " What happened?" I questioned him.

" Well, Edward stormed in first. Then you came in a couple minutes later looking kind of out of place. I could tell you were going to collapse so I grabbed you, and then you passed out." He stood up and yawned. I looked out the window. It was almost dawn.

" When did I pass out?" I asked.

" Umm. . . Probably around midnight. So you've been out for around-"

" Six hours." I muttered. " How's this possible?" I opened my door and ran down the steps. Everyone immediately crowded around me. Everyone except Edward, he wasn't there. Neither was Lynn. . .

" They're in the library looking up information on you." Carlisle answered, as if reading my thoughts. " How are you Bella?"

" Seeing as how I slept? A little freaked out." I snapped. But, something was different. I felt a whole new energy pulsing through me, like I could do anything now. Before I'd passed out, it was gone. All my energy was sucked out. And then there was the fire thing. Yeah that was weird.

" What do you think happened?" Travis asked me. I looked at him and shrugged my shoulders.

" Honestly, I think I needed to recharge. How that can happen though. . . I'll go see if Edward found everything." And with that I was running into my library. But I stopped before I walked inside. I felt a fire burn inside me. Lynn's lips were pressed against Edward's. And he wasn't pulling away. I clenched my fists and walked off, back into the living room, then right outside. What a nice thing to wake up too.


	12. Chapter 12 Done deal

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 12- Done deal**

I stopped dead in my tracks, no pun intended, and thought for a moment. Why was I always leaving my own damn house? No, if anyone was going to be leaving, it was going to be him. Or maybe, I'd just toss Lynn out the window and be done with it. That would certainly make me feel better. I doubled back and slammed the door open. Every Cullen eye was on me as I growled, " Where is he?" Lanina grabbed my arm and pulled me to the side, closing the door behind me.

" Now, as much as I love seeing you rip people apart; calm down." She told me. I arched an eyebrow and tore my arm from her grasp.

" Calm down?" I replied questioningly. " My fiancée's tongue is down a throat that is NOT mine and you want me to calm down!" I yelled. " Tell me where he is!" Travis stepped between Lanina and I; his face grim.

" They're still in the library." He said quietly. I smiled and stepped out of their way. I saw Lanina smack him out of the corner of my eye but I didn't care. I had bigger fish to fry. And oh was the fish going to fry. I walked into the library, my steps quick. Edward looked up at me, his eyes wide.

" Bella, let me explain." He started but I smiled and walked over to him slowly.

" Oh, there's no reason to explain Edward." I said sweetly and dug my nail into his arm. " Believe me, there's no reason." My eyes flicked over to Lynn, who inched her way to the bookshelf. " Let me see if I remember what I told you." I stepped a little bit forward.

" Oh yes, one mistake and I'd kill you. Guess what, kissing my fiancée? Big mistake." She groaned and held up her hands.

" I. . . I" I mocked her and grabbed her arm.

" You what?" I snarled.

" I'm sorry." She whispered, her eyes full of fear. I smirked and lowered my face so I was next to her ear.

" I'm not, because I've been waiting to sink my teeth in you for a long time." I whispered. Edward stepped closer with a growl. I looked down at my hand and smiled when I saw the fire from earlier pop up. " Come closer, and the mood I'm in? I will set your ass on fire." I warned him.

" Bella, she made a mistake-"

" She made a mistake? Oh excuse me! You're the one who didn't pull away!" I yelled. " You just gave right in!"

" I'm sorry! She just, she smells just like you! She's just like you were. I. . . I just forgot it wasn't you for a moment. Bella, I messed up, I admit it. Please, just put her down." A thought ran through my head. 'She smells just like you! She's just like you were.' Edward's voice said again in my head. And finally. . . It clicked. Mitchell. I growled and turned back to the trembling girl.

" You're not worth my energy." I spat and pushed her on the ground. Then I extinguished the fire in my palm and gritted my teeth.

That bloodsucking asshole. " This was a game for him." I muttered.

" What?" Edward asked as he helped Lynn up off the ground.

" He planned the whole thing." I continued, ignoring Edward. It was amazing how fast all the pieces could just fall together. How had I not seen it before? I looked at Lynn and felt hatred for the human run through my veins. " Get out of my house." I whispered to her. " Now." She scrambled out of the room. I turned to Edward and chuckled bitterly. " Mitchell knew Alice would have a vision of Lynn getting harmed by a vampire. He targeted her on purpose, because she smells like me. He's trying to tear apart what I'm building, starting with my relationship with you. And you ate right out of the palm of his hand. . . " I wiggled the ring off my finger.

" Bella, stop. Just, can't we talk about this?" I shook my head no and put the ring in the middle of his palm, closing his fingers over it.

" There's nothing to talk about Edward. I will always love you. But. . . I just can't trust you. And you need trust in a marriage." I went to walk out of the room but Edward grabbed me and pushed me against the wall. His eyes were black.

" Damn it all, Isabella this was not my fault!" He growled. " You said it yourself, Mitchell caused this."

" No, you have your free will Edward. Mitchell just waved a bleeding mountain lion in front of you, and you attacked. You gave in Edward, it was all you." I whispered. " You took the bait."

" Bella, do not walk away from me." He snarled once I crawled out of his grasp. I was so tired. . . So tired of being hunted and sought after. I just wanted to be invisible again. Well, as invisible as an assassin was. I just wanted to be sure of everything again.

" You walked away once; I find it funny that now I'm getting my chance. " I looked into his eyes, those beautiful topaz eyes and felt my heart break all over again. This man would be the second death of me. He put a finger on my cheek and breathed slowly.

" Bella, please." He whispered. " Please don't do this." I placed my lips against his for the briefest of seconds, then pulled away.

" I'm sorry Edward. . . But I have to. If we're meant to be, we'll find a way. But right now. . . I can't do this. I have to worry about Mitchell and I can't. . . I can't put up with this right now. I'd still like you and your family to fight beside me. But. . . I want you to move out with them." He gripped my hand with his and squeezed it.

" We are forever. You remember that Isabella. We will be together. I swear to you. I'll leave if you want me to, but I won't give up. I will never give you up." He whispered in my ear. " Never." He added forcefully. I nodded my head and backed away. Then I left the library, and the love of my life, and walked into the living room.

The next day they were moved out. It was down to me, Lanina, Travis, Laurent, Lisa and Yuzria. It felt oddly. . . Quiet in the house. Lisa and Laurent spent most of their time together. Lanina and Travis spent all their time together. And then there was Yuzria and me. The afternoon after they'd moved out we were sitting in the kitchen; he was reading a book and I was sharpening my knives. For the fifteenth time. Lanina and Travis were by the Cullens', training them. They gave me a couple days off. . . I needed it. I didn't want to see Edward. . . I just wanted to, well sharpen my knives. And stab myself repeatedly for not noticing what was going on sooner, but I refrained from doing that. ' It was his fault Noleen, stop beating yourself up about it.' I scolded myself. Oddly, I scolded myself using my other name. Why, well I didn't really know. Maybe because, I'd gotten used to it. Maybe because it was who I was before Edward came back. I groaned and whipped my sword around, I really wanted to behead someone. Yuzria raised and eyebrow and smirked.

" What's wrong?" He asked me. I sighed and practiced a few more of my moves.

" I just have a lot of my mind." He put his book down and stepped in front of me, stopping the sword with a flick of his hand. My eyes opened wide and I stepped back. It was frozen, in mid swing. Holy- " Shit! How did you do that!" I exclaimed. He chuckled and waved his hand again. The sword clattered to the floor.

" It's a gift." He teased. I nodded my head, that was awesome! " I'll work out with you if you want." He offered.

" Thanks Yuzria, but I'd break you." He smiled and shrugged his shoulders.

" Maybe, maybe not."

" Oh, I see how it is. Fine, let's go in the basement. I got a mat down there. It'll be easier for you to fall on." He chuckled and we walked down the steps. I pulled my shirt off so I was only in a tank top and my black pants. He tossed his shirt to the side and I gulped. Damn. He, unlike me, didn't have another shirt on. I looked at his muscles and that smooth olive colored skin. I swallowed and cleared my throat. I held my hands out in front of me and we started to fight. It felt good, to get my anger out like that. Just hand on hand fighting. He even managed to clip me a couple times. Of course he was older than me. So, I guess that was to be expected; kinda. He held up a hand and bent over, sweat dripping from his forehead.

" Just give me a minute." He breathed and wiped a thin line of blood away from his mouth.

" You're good." I told him, my voice even. He smiled and looked up at me, those green eyes glinting in the light.

" Thanks." He said. " You're not too shabby yourself." I chuckled and nodded my head.

" Thanks." I replied, laughing. I helped him up then put my hand on my hip. " Maybe we should stop."

" No, I'm fine." He put his hands back up and smiled. " Come on, unless you're scared of getting whipped." I snorted and held up my hands.

" You wish."

Yuzria placed a cup o' blood in front of me and sat down with his coffee. " Well, that was one hell of a fight." He joked. I nodded my head and took a sip of my blood.

" Yes it was." We laughed for a couple seconds, just liking each other's company. " Thanks." I said softly. He shook his head, his curls bouncing.

" No problem. I know what it feels like, to need something to get your head off the subject of. . . Those who shalt not be named."

" Yeah, you do." I sighed and leaned back. " Yuzria, why do people suck?" He laughed and shrugged his shoulders.

" I do not know Isabella." He responded. I liked the way my name rolled off his tongue. It made me sound. . . Exotic. " I wish I did." He whispered.

" Don't we all." Silence fell over us for a couple minutes, but it was a comfortable silence. Suddenly, a thought occurred to me. " Hey, will you show me more of your little, freezy trick?"

" Sure, if you show me your little fire trick."

" Done deal." I replied and got up. We walked into the living room and spent the next hour just showing each other the tricks of the trade. And it was really nice. I didn't even remember my problems.

**Wow, it's longer!! Haha, I liked it. Hope you did too! Bad Edward, I know. Review and I'll love you!**

**Until next time,**

**Faith**


	13. Chapter 13 Stand by me

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 13- Stand by me**

I flicked the channels with a sigh. Nothing was good on T.V nowadays. Blah. I looked at the clock and groaned. And nothing was ever good at three in the morning. I rolled my eyes and turned the tube off. Lanina and Travis were doing something in their room. I didn't really want to know, so I didn't ask when they headed up there. Lisa and Laurent were hunting. Well, they were at the club where you didn't kill people, only drank their blood. I licked my lips, I could go for a tiny little Bleeder at the moment; but I also didn't want to leave. I got up and stepped into the library. Visions of what had happened flew through my head. After the fact I was a little surprise I hadn't killed Lynn. Cause Lord knew I could've slit her throat and not felt guilty about it in the morning. _' You knew Edward wouldn't want that.' _I thought to myself. I really hated that I cared what Edward thought. Guess it came with the territory. I glanced at the books on the shelves. Most were ones I enjoyed reading from time to time. New ones were being bought all the time. I could do a lot of reading, seeing as how I'd live forever and everything. I heard a slight tap on the door and turned to it. Carlisle was sitting there, a small smile on his face.

" Good morning Isabella." He said politely. I bent my head once in acknowledgement and turned back to the books. " I have something for you." He continued and stepped inside.

" If it's from Edward, I don't want it." I mumbled.

" It's not." He laughed. I sighed and faced him again. He had a book open in his hands.

" What? Passages from the Bible?" I joked. He shook his head no and pointed to a passage in the book.

" This chapter is entirely about you Bella. Well, not you per say, guardians in general." I looked at him sheepishly and glanced down at the book. Sure shooting, it was all about guardians.

" Thanks Carlisle." I whispered and took the book from his hands. " I'll get it back to you as soon as I'm through with it." He held up a hand and smiled.

" No rush." I nodded and sat down in front of my fireplace. The curtains were drawn open so I could see the bright moon from where I was sitting. I heard a slight shift from behind me and looked around. Carlisle was still standing there. " May I have a seat?" He asked. I nodded my head and kicked my feet up. He sat down and gazed at the fireplace. " It's not lit." He stated.

" Never has been." I replied. The first paragraph in the book was about how the guardian came about. I already knew all that. Well, the simple version; I had the kind of blood needed. The rest was about my powers. I'd already gotten most of them, the fact that I could heal was a big one. But I had to want them to live. I got to chose who lived and who died. . . Hmm, that was kinda nice. It mentioned the fire thing, I still wasn't quite sure what to call it. And it said that I needed to "recharge" every once and a while. That meant that every couple weeks, I'd have one night's sleep. That was kinda nice too. I skimmed along some parts, mostly the ones that said guardians were some of the most sought after supernatural creatures out there. I'd gotten to see just how true that was so far. It seemed like everyone wanted the guardian on their side. There was no other powers that I could see, so I closed the book.

" Interesting is it not?" Carlisle spoke up.

" Yeah, proves that I'm something special after all."

" We've always known you were special Bella. Always. Edward-" I held up my hand, a soft smile on my face.

" I don't want to go there Carlisle. Thank you but. . . I can't right now." He nodded his head and got up. I felt him put a hand on my shoulder, his eyes staring warmly into mine.

" You will always be a part of our family Bella. Remember that." He told me.

" I know Carlisle. And thank you, for staying by me through this."

" There's no one else I'd rather fight beside." He gave my shoulder a soft squeeze and exited the room. I smirked and stood up, stretching my back as soon as I was up. I grabbed a book off the shelf and curled back on the couch. Glancing at the title, I smiled. Pride and Prejudice; one of my favorites.

" You gotta see him sometime." Lanina scolded me, pulling a dish out of the cupboard for Yuzria. We were making dinner for him. Well, Lanina was. I was watching from the island counter and occasionally getting her something.

" That's where you're wrong. I don't have to do anything I want to." I replied, licking some sauce off my fingers. She scowled and slapped my shoulder.

" Stop licking the sauce."

" It tastes good. Geez, sorry mom." I teased. She smirked and blew a piece of her hair out of her face. I looked at the apron around her waist and stifled back a smirk. It was funny, seeing a big, bad vampire wearing an apron. It said, "Love the cook" on the front of it. I thought back to a Will and Grace episode and giggled. Hey, when you have as much time as me on your hands, you watch a hell of a lot of t.v. " What are you making him?" I asked her after a while. She rolled her eyes and peered at me while stirring the sauce.

" I told you, pasta with homemade sauce."

" Oh. . . Sounds good."

" It is good, my mom used to make it all the time." She smiled and put a hand on her hip, a faraway look on her face. " I remember how happy I was when she actually let me help her cook. I felt so important. And it was like a thing for just her and me to do."

" That sounds cool. I wish my mom could've cooked." Lanina smiled and shrugged her shoulders.

" My mom used to say it's a gift to be able to cook a truly wonderful meal."

" I agree." She went back to her sauce for a couple seconds.

" I love him." She murmured after a while. I furrowed my eyebrows. She turned to me, a sheepish smile on her face. " Travis. . . I love him. I really do Nol." I smirked and stood up.

" He sucked you into his web eh?" I teased. She chuckled softly and shook her head.

" Yeah, I guess he did. . ." She leaned against the counter. I could see the way her crimson eyes glowed. She wasn't lying. " He just, he makes me feel better about who I am. I haven't felt like this in so long. . . I thought all the humanity in me died when Annebelle-"

" I know Lan, my life wasn't the only one she ruined. She screwed you over too." I whispered.

" Yeah." She sighed and brushed a hand through her long, golden hair. " She did." I wrapped my arms around her in a friendly hug. She was always there for me when I needed her, now I needed to be there for her.

" I'm happy for you." I told her honestly. " He's good for you." She nodded her head and grinned.

" He's great in the sack." She stated. I rolled my eyes and stepped away.

" That's way too much info." She tilted her head back and the kitchen filled with her laughter.

" You know you were wondering." I shook my head no and took another lick of the sauce. It was really good. She slapped away my hand and shooed me out of the kitchen. I laughed and sat back down. I sighed and leaned my head against the back of the chair. I didn't want this to change, nothing. I didn't want to be some special vampire that everyone looked for. But I knew the job had to be done, and if anyone would do it right, it'd be me. It was then I opened my eyes and caught the person standing outside of my window. I jolted up and glanced outside. What the hell?

**Wow, thanks to everyone for reviewing! I was so-o-o surprised to see how many of you want Yuzria and Bella to either end up together or get together. haha. I thought for sure I'd get lynched with the whole Edward thing. It's nice to know y'all are supportive! Haha, hope you liked this chapter. Even though I ended with another cliffie. hehe. I know, I'm so rude. Keep reviewing! I love hearing from ya! Y'ALL ROCK! MWAH!**

**Until next time, **

**Faith**


	14. Chapter 14 Fight fire with fire

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 14- Fight fire with fire**

The chair fell to the floor with a thud. Lanina whipped around, her eyebrow raised. " What the-" She began, but then saw the vampire standing outside and growled. " I hate when they pop in." She snarled. I nodded my head and opened the French doors. Laurent and Lisa were down in a flash, their faces grim. Laurent saw the vampire and glanced at Lisa. His eyes met mine and I nodded my head; best hide the fugitive. She growled and pulled out a bow and arrow set.

" I'm not hiding." She stated and put an arrow on the string and released. It flew right past the vamp's head. He smirked, his brown hair falling slightly in his eyes. I withdrew my knife and got ready to throw it when I was knocked to the ground. I looked around and saw it was Yuzria.

" Why the hel-" He covered my mouth with his hand and put a finger to his lips. I groaned and rolled my eyes. " 'et 'e go" My voice came out muffled against his skin. All of a sudden a flash of fire came bursting into the kitchen. My eyes opened wide when I heard someone scream. I kicked him off me and rolled over to Lisa. The sleeve on her arm caught fire. I quickly stamped it out and stood back up. The guy was gone. I snarled and went to turn back to Lisa when I noticed the piece of paper arrowed to the tree. I peeked out the window, not wanting to step into a trap.

" It's okay." Yuzria assured me and nodded his head when I turned to him.

" I knew that." I grumbled and walked outside. No one shot anything at me, so I assumed he was right. I snatched the paper and quickly read it. It simply said, 'I know you have her and I want her back. Mitchell.' I rolled my eyes and crumpled the paper up. " I'll give you something alright." I muttered. " But it won't be Lisa." I walked back inside and threw the paper in the garbage can. " He wants Lisa back." I said as soon as I got back inside. Laurent instantly put an arm around her waist and pulled her to him.

" Never." He told us all. " We're not giving her back to that monster."

" I said he wanted her, I never said I was giving her back. You idiot." I replied. He frowned and kissed her cheek.

" Good."

" How did you two meet anyways?" Lanina spoke up. " And how in the world can you like a guy like him?" She asked Lisa. Lisa shrugged her shoulders and kissed him back.

" He's sweet, and protects me. And loves me too." She responded.

" I saw her get changed. The vampire left her laying there, changing with no one around. I picked her up and brought her to where I was living at the time and helped her." Laurent answered Lanina's first question. " She stayed with me for six months, then one day she was gone." He whispered. She lowered her gaze to the floor, I could tell she didn't want to talk about it. Besides, she'd probably already told him.

" Go on upstairs if you want. We'll be down here." I said softly. " Don't worry Lisa, we'll keep you safe." She nodded her head and put her bow and arrow away. At least she could take care of herself fairly well. Laurent gave me a small smile and nodded his head in thanks. I nodded it back and watched them leave. Then I turned to Yuzria. " Umm, why did you push me down?" I asked sweetly. He chuckled and sat down at the table.

" I could feel the power in the air. I knew it wasn't you, you feel different." I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion. He held up his hand and threw a fork in the air, freezing it before it came back down. " Did you feel anything?" He asked me. I shook my head no. He did it again and then I did, it was a small change in the air.

" I felt it." I told him.

" Well, I felt him getting ready to use his powers and ran down here. Some people feel different when they use their magic, like vampires and such. Simply because they're not true witches." I nodded my head, sorta understanding him.

" So. . .What does it feel like when I do it?" I questioned him. He shrugged his shoulders and sighed.

" Kind of like a sight tugging in the air. And after you use your powers, you leave a scent behind."

" Like what?"

" Usually roses is yours." I smiled. " You wouldn't be able to smell it though because-"

" I'm not a true witch." I finished for her. He nodded his head. " Wow, learn new things every day I guess." Lanina snorted and went back to her sauce. Yuzria glanced at her and I heard his stomach growl. I grinned, it sounded funny. " Don't worry, it'll be done soon." I assured him. I looked around, suddenly noticing Travis wasn't around. " Hey, where is your beau?" I asked Lanina. She turned to me, a slight frown on her face.

" A friend of his called needing his help with something. He left earlier today." She replied. I made an 'o' with my lips and shook my head.

" That sucks." I sighed and kicked my feet up on the table. I closed my eyes and just listened to the sounds around me. Lanina stirring her sauce, Yuzria flipping the pages of his book. . . Then something came to me. I darted up and they both looked at me. " He was a vampire." I stated. Lanina rolled her eyes and nodded her head.

" Good Noleen! Wanna treat?" She teased. I hissed and stood up.

" How many vampires do you know who can shoot fire?" I snapped at her. Her eyes opened wide.

" So, what are you thinking?" She asked me, looking worried.

" That he's a guardian too." Yuzria whispered for me. I glanced at him and nodded my head slowly.

The moon shined in my room, a slant of light ran through my floor. I looked up at the ceiling and sighed. Another guardian, who would've thunk it? I couldn't believe it. Mitchell was fighting me with someone just like, well me. The term fight fire with fire came to mind and I grimaced. I couldn't believe it. What a jerk. I chucked my pillow across the room, hearing it hit the wall with a thud and slid down. I heard the door open and someone walk in. I didn't look at them, I just stared at the ceiling. " Whadya want?" I asked to, well no one in particular.

" I want to know if you're okay." Edward replied. I jumped up and looked at him. The purple circles under his eyes looked darker and he looked so tired. So weary. I cleared my throat and laid my head on my knees.

" I don't know." I whispered back. I blew out a harsh breath and pinched myself. " I will be." I added in. " I'll be fine. It just threw me for a loop is all." He sat at the edge of my bed and smiled softly.

" I can imagine, but that's not what I was talking about." He said softly. I stared in his dark topaz eyes, they were filled with such sorrow. . . 'Noleen! Don't feel sorry for him! He hurt you!'

" Oh." I said. " I'm fine."

" Bella-" He went to put a hand on my knee but I inched away.

" Edward, don't." I said forcefully. " I told you that when I figure everything out I'll come to you."

" Bella, it was a kiss!" He exclaimed and threw his hands up. " What do I have to do to make you trust me again?"

" Give me time Edward, leave me alone." I replied. " God, I need time to think. About me and everything that's going on. I can't be worrying about you and I!" He took my hands in his and brought them to his lips.

" Bella, if you love me like you say you do, why do you need so much time? Why can't you just forgive me?" He rubbed my cheek with my hand and leaned forward a little. I realized what was happening and pushed him away.

" Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me." I sneered. " You killed me when you left, I forgave you. Then you go and pull this shit? I need my time to figure things out and if you can't give it to me, then leave and don't look back. I got over you once, I can do it again so help me God." He rubbed the bridge of his noise and let out a frustrated breath.

" Bella, I'm so-"

" I know you're sorry Edward! But you keep doing it!" I punched him in the shoulder and threw my hands up to my head. " You are slowly driving me crazy!" I cried. He wrapped me into his arms and rubbed my back softly.

" I told you I'll give you time." He whispered. " But I miss you so damn much." I heard a crack in his voice and smirked. Good, he was in pain. I tilted my head up so I could see him. I moved my lips closer to his but didn't kiss him.

" Then you should've kept your lips to yourself." I whispered back. He groaned and put his head on my shoulder. I inhaled deeply, god he always smelled good. " Go home Edward." I pulled back and crossed my arms. " I'll see you tomorrow." He nodded his head and left my room. I didn't want him to leave, but I knew I couldn't let him stay either. I had to stand my ground, I had to make sure he'd never pull something like this again. Until I was sure of that, he wasn't getting anything from me but words. And he was lucky he was getting those.


	15. Chapter 15 Giving into temptation

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 15- Giving into temptation**

I watched as the Cullens' practiced. I noticed how fluid Yuzria was with his movements; he made fighting appear to be a dance. I smiled and moved my gaze, landing on Edward and Alice. Alice was doing good, using her small frame to her advantage.

" Keep your posture Edward!" I cried out. " Being sloppy gets you killed." He immediately straightened. I smirked and walked over to Lanina and Travis. We watched our tiny yet powerful army practice. " They're good." I said after a few moments. They nodded their heads and Lanina patted my back.

" Good enough to stay alive. Good job Nol, you did it." She told me.

" With your guys' help." I pointed out.

" It's no problem. Your fight is our fight." Travis spoke up. I laughed and gave him a quick hug; thanking the Lord I had such good friends. I glanced at my watch, they'd been practicing for well on three hours.

" Alright guys! That's enough for today!" I yelled. Everyone stopped and broke apart. We left the Cullens', who were heading out to hunt, and walked home. I laid down on the couch and sighed, running a hand through my hair. Making an army was harder than it looked. Laurent, Lisa, Lanina, Travis and Yuzria walked into the living room after me and sat down in various places. Laurent and Lisa on the floor, Travis on the chair with Lanina on his lap and Yuzria next to me.

" I haven't seen you looking into anyone's mind lately." Laurent mused to me aloud. I furrowed my eyebrows; I'd forgotten all about that. Yuzria looked at me in confusion.

" I can look into people's minds and see what they've done wrong in their life. Also, other vampires can't affect me with their powers. Like Edward can't read my mind and Alice can't see into my future. I had those two gifts before all this guardian stuff happened." I told him, making everything clear.

" Oh. Well. . . Let me see, try it on me." I shifted in my seat and grimaced.

" Umm, I don't think that's a good idea." I replied.

" Why ever not?" He asked.

" Because I'm going into battle with you. I don't want to know what you've done wrong." Laurent chuckled, causing me to whip my head towards him and growl. " What's so funny Laurent?"

" That's bullshit. You don't want to know what Yuzria's done because you like-" Lisa slapped him, her eyes glaring into his. He looked back at me. " You like mystery in life." He finished, a scowl on his face. He knew that sounded bad just as much as I did. I sighed and put my fingers on my head, rubbing my temple.

" Laurent, go do something before I make you my practice dummy." He and Lisa stood, then walked up the steps. He gave me an apologetic look before reaching the top. Lanina and Travis smiled weakly, while Yuzria laughed from beside me. I stood up and grabbed my jacket off the hook, then opened the door.

" Where are you going?" Lanina questioned me, looking a little worried.

" I need to feed." I stated simply. She nodded her head and turned to Travis. I went to walk out the door when all of a sudden I felt someone behind me. I turned around slowly and saw Yuzria pulling on his jacket also. " Um. . . Where do you think you're going?" I asked him.

" With you." He answered.

" I don't think so."

" I need more supplies."

" Then I'll drop you off at the store first." He shrugged his shoulders and we stepped outside. Once in my car, he pulled his jacket from his wrist and put it in front of me. I looked at it in surprise. " You've been bitten." I breathed, how had I not seen that before? He smiled and nodded his head.

" My old vampire lover got a tad carried away one night. It felt unbelievable though."

" What? Are you kidding me? It hurts like hell!"

" It's different for those with magic in their blood."

" Oh, really?" He shook his head as I touched the scar lightly. A tiny surge of energy flowed into my fingertips and I pulled my hand away. "How did she find it in her to stop? I mean. . . You smell good. I can only imagine how you taste."

" Thank you, I think." We both laughed and I started the car. " I pushed her back." He answered softly and tapped his head. Magic worked all sorts of wonders.

" How were you not turned?" He leaned back against the seat, getting comfortable.

" Not enough venom got into my system. You see, witch blood is able to battle the venom of a vampire. But only to an extent. Then the venom overtakes the blood and we turn."

" Oh, didn't know that. So what? The venom is out of your system? Or is it just lingering there?"

" It was a brutal procedure, but the venom is out."

" What did you have to do?" Yuzria looked out the window and chuckled upon seeing we were already in front of the magic store.

" I told you I wasn't bringing you with me." He smirked and looked at me with those green eyes.

" There's not much you know of me." He said softly and touched my chin with a finger. I couldn't help it. . . I peeked. I closed my eyes and concentrated, I hadn't done it for a while. Memories flowed from his mind to mine. I saw him fighting, making love with who I assumed was the vampire who bit him, and using magic. But for all the wrong reasons. I opened my eyes and started when I saw he was directly in front of me.

" What did you see?" He asked.

" You fighting and using magic for the. . . Well, the wrong people." He smiled bitterly.

" Yes, Galie got me to do quite a lot of things I regret." He said.

" The vampire." I stated.

" Yes." I could feel his breath on my face and felt it. The pull. I was hungry and he smelled really good. I put my hand on his chest and felt his heart beat underneath my fingertips. " You're hungry, I recognize that look." I looked back into his eyes and nodded.

" You need to go." I managed to say. I cleared my throat and pulled away from him. He stepped outside the car.

" When will you be back?"

" Thirty minutes, tops." I answered, looking straight ahead. He shut the door and walked inside the store. I let out a shaky breath and leaned against the seat. Laurent was right. . . I did like him. More than I should. But seeing him bad didn't make me like him less. It made me like him more. " Get a grip Nol." I muttered and started the car. I needed food, there was a mugger out there who was going to have a really rough night tonight.

I honked the horn for the third time. He waved his hand from inside the store; I couldn't believe there was a line in a magic store. For God's sake. I groaned and slammed my hand on the steering wheel, I did not have the patience for waiting. Besides, the man I'd drunk tasted kind of rank. I couldn't finish him. I'd have to go to the club after all. There were no other evil doers out, what was the world coming to? Finally I got out of the car and stormed inside the store. The clerk looked up at me and her face dropped. " You're going to check him out-" I pointed at Yuzria who was holding back his laughter. " Right now or I'm going to eat you." I said to her. She nodded her head and pushed the other people out of the way. I sat and watched as she quickly checked him out and wished him a nice night. I smiled sweetly as soon as she was finished and we walked outside.

" There's a tiny drop of blood on the corner of your mouth." He laughed as soon as we were in the car. I chuckled and wiped at my lips. " Wait, here." He swept a finger across the corner of my lips and held up the blood on his finger.

" Thanks." I said and started the car. He wiped the blood on his pants and put his bag on his lap.

" Were you unable to feed well?"

" No, there wasn't a big variety out tonight. I'm going to have to go to this club Lanina found. No biggie." Out of the corner of my eye I saw him pull out a knife and hold it to his arm. I stopped the car and grabbed the knife. " Whoa!" I exclaimed. " What the hell do you think you're doing!" I all but shrieked.

" Helping you." He replied and went to grab the knife back. I threw it out the window and he looked at me like I was crazy. " What did you do that for!" He yelled.

" You're crazy if you think I'm going to drink from you Yuzria."

" A little bit of my blood will fill you better than three humans could." He pointed out to me.

" I don't really care."

" Bella-"

" No Yuzria. End of story." He grabbed my arm and pulled me close to him. His heartbeat echoed in my head, I could practically feel his blood running down my throat. He reached for the knife across my thigh but I stopped him. " You're nuts." I whispered. He nodded his head and smiled.

" I tend to be." He breathed. " I'm sick of this Bella." He said after a few moments. I cleared out of the fog I was in and looked at him.

" Sick of what?" I asked.

" Pretending there's nothing between us when there clearly is. You need to either go me the go or tell me it'll never happen."

" Yuzria-" He put a finger to my lips and shook his head; I could see his green eyes were growing dark with lust.

" No Bella, it's a simple yes or no question." I moved his finger and could still smell the blood on it. Everything cleared from my mind, nothing else was there but now; this moment.

" Yes. God yes." I managed to say before pressing my lips against his. I could feel his heart quicken. He ran his fingers through my hair and let out a soft moan. I smiled into the kiss and deepened it. It felt good, warm. He pulled back a little and swallowed.

" You're going to need to feed, or else. . . " He trailed off. I knew as well as him what would happen if I didn't get blood into me. I glanced at his throat.

" I won't hurt you?" I checked with him. He nodded his head and I lowered mine to his neck. I grazed the skin with my teeth and felt him shiver beneath me. Then I slowly sank them in and heard him groan. His blood was great. I felt it flow down my throat, but I also knew I needed to pull away. How I managed to remember, I have no clue. I pulled back and kissed him deeply. " You taste good." I whispered. He smiled and kissed me back.

" I've heard that before." He whispered. I shifted so I had my knees on either sides of him. " You are very talented aren't you?" He breathed. I smirked and nodded my head.

" You bet." I replied before lowering my lips to his once more.

**Ooo, they both gave in. Tee hee. Lol. I liked this chapter, hopefully you guys did too! Sorry for the late update, I had a wee writers block. But it's all better! haha. Review review review! lol, and again I hope you liked the chapter. **

**Until next time,**

**Faith**


	16. Chapter 16 Romeo and Juliet

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 16- Romeo and Juliet**

I listened to Yuzria's heartbeat, slow and even. I put my hand on his bare chest. I managed to drive home after the romp in the car; then we went up to my room for another round. I didn't think it would be as nice as it was. He was gentle and made me forget all my problems. I smiled and kissed him softly, then stood up and wrapped a sheet around myself. I went to walk away when I felt him grab my wrist. " Where are you going?" He mumbled and sat up, wiping his eyes with his other hand.

" I was going to go shower." I replied, kneeling back on the bed. He smiled and put a finger on my cheek.

" You don't need to." He pointed out. I smirked and scooted closer to him.

" But I want to." He put a hand around my neck and ran his hands through the hair there. Then he moved closer and kissed me deeply. When he pulled back I could see something was troubling him. Worry shined bright in those beautiful green eyes. " What's wrong?" I asked. He shrugged his shoulders and let out a small sigh. I smiled weakly and pulled myself onto his lap, touching the scar I'd left slightly. " Tell me." I whispered.

" Where do we go from here?" He whispered back. " What are we going to do? I know you still care about Ed-" I put a finger on his lips, stopping him right there.

" I know what you're thinking Yuzria. But, this wasn't a way to get back at Edward. I swear to you. I do like you, I truly do. Where do we go? I don't know. . . But I do know this wasn't a mistake to me, and I hope it wasn't for you." He smiled and kissed my cheek.

" Never. Now, let's go shower." I laughed and stood up.

" I won't get much showering done with you there." I told him. He wrapped an arm around my waist and kissed my head.

" That's what I'm looking forward to." He responded, an amused twinkle in his eyes.

We walked down the stairs hand in hand, laughing over something I'd said. Lanina had a hand on the banister, her eyebrow arched. She smiled softly and gave me a kissy face. I rolled my eyes and turned to Yuzria. " Go start making your potion okay?" I whispered to him. He nodded his head and squeezed my waist, then headed into the kitchen. I stepped beside Lanina and smirked. " You really shouldn't say a word." I told her.

" You're right, I shouldn't. But, I'm going to." She replied and pulled me into the living room. " Give me details." She stated and looked at me intensely.

" Come on Lan-" She shook her head and grabbed my hands.

" Listen to me, this is what friends do! You already know how Travis is because you've slept with him! So, really we can't share any dirty secrets because we both know. But, I don't know about Yuzria, so spill Nol!" I chuckled and sighed.

" Okay, well. . . It was really good." She laughed and shook her head.

" Yeah, he looks like he'd be a good one. Okay what else?"

" I bit him." I whispered. She gasped and looked at the wall by the kitchen.

" What!" She exclaimed. " But how?"

" He can battle off venom Lan, because of his blood. He's fine, he just has to make a potion and it'll kill the venom in him." She leaned back, her mouth over her hand.

" Wow. . . I was not expecting that."

" Yeah, neither was I. . . He tastes good." She smirked and brushed a hand through his hair.

" Lucky. Well, what are you going to do now?"

" He asked the same thing. I don't know." I shrugged my shoulders and leaned against the back of the couch. " I think we should give it a chance. What do you think?"

" I don't know. He's sweet, nice, can hold his own. But. . . Is he Edward?" She asked me. " You pined over that man for twenty years Nol, you were engaged to him. . . "

" Yeah, and he made out with someone else." I replied bitterly. She shook her head in agreement and put a hand on my shoulder.

" Give Yuzria a chance." She said firmly. " But don't lie to yourself. If Edward's where your heart lies, tell Yuzria that. Both you and him deserve the truth."

" I know." I whispered and gave her a quick smile. Then we got up and walked into the kitchen where Yuzria was standing over a smoking pot. He looked up and smiled, then turned his attention back to his brew. We both sat down at the table, where Laurent and Lisa were also sitting. Laurent gave me a thumbs up and winked at me. " Shut up." I muttered. He snickered and planted a big kiss on Lisa's cheek.

" Hey don't be ashamed. We all do it." He said to me. I shuttered and held up a hand.

" Please, no mental images." Lisa laughed and put an arm around his neck.

" She got ya there." She slapped his shoulder and smiled bright.

" Well, ain't you two chipper." Lanina spoke up, she was leaning against the counter with an amused look on her face. If Lisa could've blushed, she would've been. Laurent stayed calm and just gave her a smile. " Seems like we all were having a little fun last night." She mumbled and took a packet of blood out of the fridge. Yuzria laughed and sat next to me. I put my head on his shoulder and my hand on his leg. He smiled and put his hand on top of it. I looked out the French windows and saw rain was falling down slowly. I hadn't even heard it. Of course. . . I smiled and looked at Yuzria.

" Your eyes are beautiful right now." He told me and stared into them. " A lovely shade of red." I cracked up and kissed his cheek.

" Well ain't you the charmer?" I teased.

" I've been known to charm a few ladies, yes." He joked back. I smirked and looked back out the window; then jumped at least ten feet in the air. Edward was standing there, his face grim. I stood up and glanced at Yuzria.

" Stay here." I told him. He stood up beside me, his face serious.

" I can protect myself." He said.

" Hey, listen I'm not going to put up with some testosterone battle. You just, stay here. Laurent, please keep him here." Laurent stood up and nodded his head.

" Sit down Yuzi, you ain't going anywhere." He said and cracked his knuckles. I rolled my eyes and walked outside. Rain fell onto my head as I approached Edward.

" Why are you here?" I asked him. He looked at me, his eyes sorrowful but the rest of him was clearly pissed off.

" I heard him. . . I can smell him all over you." He replied, I could hear the disgust in his voice. I crossed my arms over my chest and held my ground.

" I do not have to explain myself to you."

" Damn it Bella!" He yelled and turned around, throwing his hands in the air. " Why are you doing this?" I scoffed and unlocked my arms.

" One, this has nothing to do with you. We're on a break therefore, I can be with whoever I want to be. I have freedom now. If you hadn't shoved your tongue down Lynn's throat I wouldn't be with Yu-" He whipped around, his eyes black.

" You're still caught up on that? I told you, it was-"

" I don't care how you explain it Edward Anthony Cullen you cheated on me with that. . . That human! You shoved me aside and you gave into her. And hurt me in the process!" He surged forward and shoved me up against the wall. I didn't care because it didn't hurt me. I pounded my hands on his chest and let out a cry. " Get off me!" I yelled. Suddenly he pressed his lips against mine. When he pulled apart, I was still shocked.

" Tell me there's nothing there. Or tell me everything is there. Either tell me you love me and be with me again or let me go Bella. Because I can't just stand by and watch you throw yourself at him." I could practically feel my eyes darken.

" Excuse me?" I question and pushed him away. " Throw myself at him?" I chuckled bitterly and wiped the rain from my face. " He makes me feel wanted Edward. . . Makes me feel needed. Once, you did too. But now. . . We can't even be in the same room five minutes without yelling at each other! Everything between us has changed! It'll never be the same! It can't be the same. I've gone through too much to just go back to being the old Bella. That isn't me anymore. I've tried to tell you that, but I don't think you want to hear it Edward. You chose to walk away from me. You chose to kiss Lynn. Now, I'm making my own choice. . . I'm choosing to see what happens with Yuzria. Because, even though you and me are clearly meant to be; we can't be." He took my hands in his and stared into my eyes.

" Why not Bella? Why can't we? Look at your favorite play, Romeo and Juliet. In ways, we're just like that-" I put a finger to his lips and shook my head, water dripped from my hair down my neck.

" Look what happened to them Edward. They ended up killing each other. . . If we stay together, because of how we felt in the past, we'll just end up doing the same thing. Killing ourselves. Maybe not physically but. . . We'll be gone. Just. . . Let me do this Edward. I swear, if in my heart I know you are still the one, I'll come running to you. Just please. . . Stop. You've hurt me too much. I can't take it any longer." He nodded his head and let go of my hands.

" Fine Bella." He replied, and then walked away. I leaned against the house and let out a dry sob. The rain fell down my face; it was the tears I couldn't cry.

**Wow, how dramatic haha. So, I never meant for Edward to come across as an asshole, if you can believe that lol. It kinda just happened. You know? Well, I personally liked this chapter, hopefully you guys did too! It was long too! lol. So, review review review cause it makes me happy and we all know a happy author is a good one haha. And I shall see you guys later.**

**Until next time, **

**Faith**


	17. Chapter 17 Times like these

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 17- Times like these**

I held Yuzria's hand while he tipped the potion into his mouth. He shuddered and let out a groan of pain. I tightened my grip on his hand and held him as the brew ran through his blood. After a few minutes his grip loosened and he let out a sigh. " I'm okay." He assured me with a smile.

" You sure?" I asked, putting a hand on his cheek.

" Positive." He gave me a quick kiss and put the glass down on the counter. I brushed a black curl away from his eyes gently and returned the kiss. Then I touched the scar on his neck lightly, feeling him shiver from the touch.

" What's it feel like?" I questioned him, listening to his heart beat a little faster.

" Indescribable." He whispered, his eyes burning into mine. I smiled and kissed the scar softly. He let out a tiny groan and moved me so I was up against the counter. I smirked and ran a hand through his hair.

" I like having such a strong effect on you." I mused. He grinned and swept a finger across my cheek.

" You do, do you?" I put my arms around his waist and nodded my head slowly.

" I do." I told him and rested my head on his chest. He rubbed my back softly and hummed something in a language I didn't know. I sighed and closed my eyes, taking everything in. " You're so warm. . . "

" I'm glad I'm able to warm you up." I tilted my head and glanced at him. " What's troubling you?" He asked me quietly. I shrugged my shoulders and pulled away a little.

" I hurt people Yuzria, it's what I'm made to do. I don't want to hurt you." I answered.

" You won't hurt me Bella."

" You don't know-" He held up a hand and shook his head.

" You're right, I don't. Not for sure. But honestly, I don't care Bella. There's just something about you. You made my breath stop when I first saw you and ever since then you've been nothing but amazing to me. You welcomed me into your home, talked to me when I needed to. . . You've been hurt so much Bella, you've been through things I could never begin to understand. And still, through all that darkness your light shines brightly. I don't know what you were like as a human, but I know you are wonderful now. You're a brilliant fighter and so strong. . . Edward is crazy for letting you slip through his fingers not once, but twice. I don't think you know how beautiful you truly are." If I could blush and cry, I would've been doing both.

" How do you do that? Manage to make me so weak in the knees and soft." He smirked and kissed me gently.

" It's a gift." He teased when he pulled back. I smirked and brought him closer to me.

" Damn good gift." A knock from the door tore me away from his warm arms. He followed me to the door, his hand resting on my back. Lanina and Lisa looked up from the television; Travis and Laurent were in the basement practicing their moves. I swung the door open and smiled as soon as I saw Jasper standing there. " Come on in Jazz." He nodded his head and stepped inside. " What's up?" He handed me a note, a grim look on his face.

" It's from Mitchell." He said, sounding angry. I furrowed my eyebrows and quickly read the note, then I let out a low growl. Mitchell threatened the Cullens'. The note said that if they helped me, he'd come after their family.

" Who does he think he is? The frigging godfather? God damn Don Corleone?" I spat and crumpled the piece of paper up. " Jasper, tell your family that if you guys want to leave, I'd understand." He shook his head no, determination was deeply etched on his face.

" We're going to fight with you Bella. You're our family also." I smiled weakly and threw the paper onto the floor. He put a hand on my arm and sighed. " Don't worry Bella, we'll be fine. Carlisle just wanted me to run over and let you know we're being watched. Just like you probably are."

" Well, tell Carlisle thanks for me Jazz."

" I will." He went to walk back out the door when I spotted the crumpled paper on the floor. " Jazz-" he turned around and stopped. " Extra practice tonight. Tell your family to be here at seven o'clock."

" Kay Bells." I watched him start his run home then shut the door, leaning against it. Yuzria rubbed my shoulder and brushed my hair away from my face.

" Everything will be okay." He told me, sounding so sure of himself.

" Yeah, I know. I'm going to make that son of a bitch regret ever pitting himself up against me." I snarled and walked up the stairs. I had a few phone calls to make. He'd pushed my last button; now I was pulling out the big guns.

The sword sizzled as I splashed the potion onto it. I looked up and watched everyone fight, occasionally barking out an order. All in all, the Cullens' were ready. Lanina, Travis, Lisa, Laurent and Yuzria seemed born ready. And the Lord knew I was ready to kick Mitchell's ass. I waited until the liquid was dried onto the sword, then tossed it aside on the small pile that was slowly growing. I'd already charmed guns for Yuzria, Lanina, Travis and I. I didn't know if the Cullens' would want to use them. I licked my lips and picked up another sword to charm. There was no such thing as too many weapons. The moon lit up our backyard, stars glittered in the sky. Not a single word had been spoken between Edward and I. If he wanted to sulk, that was fine with me. I turned my attention to Yuzria, he looked amazing when fighting. He was practicing with Emmett. At first I was wary about that, but he'd definitely proved himself to me. He was holding his own very well. Matching Emmett's brawn with his fast thinking and skill. I looked down at the sword and found it was done; throwing it aside I picked up another one. Lanina came and sat by me, her lips pursed. " Why aren't they here yet?" She asked. She was the only one who knew that I'd called in some. . . Backup. I smiled and turned to her.

" Don't worry, they'll be here soon." I replied.

" Yeah, I guess. I just don't know how the Cullens' are going to take it."

" What do you mean?" I asked her, my eyebrows arched in confusion. She smirked and pointed her head toward them.

" Let's just say the vegetarians won't out number us anymore. Maybe we could scare 'em and drink somebody in our house." I chuckled and nodded my head.

" That would freak them out."

" Sure as shit. So, what happened between you and Edward?" I shrugged my shoulders and put the sword down; I could always do the rest later.

" I told him I needed time and that I need to think about everything."

" Do you still love him?"

" Well, yeah I still love him it's just. . . I'm not the person he fell in love with. I'm not the same Bella. And, I can't be with someone who can't take me for who I am. I mean, I know he wants to but-"

" You still think he's freaked out about you being a human blood sucker." I laughed and shook my head.

" If you want to put it like that, yes." She smiled and ran a hand through her blonde hair. We were both in sweats, although she pulled the look off better than I did. I preferred leather. Meow.

" Well, do what you need to do. You know I support you either way. You deserve someone who'll love Noleen just as much as Bella." She winked and darted up to go fight some more. I bit my lip and sat back in my chair.

" Yeah. . . " I whispered. " I do." I looked at Edward, studied him. His face was serious as he blocked Rosalie's attack and pushed her back. I sighed, what was a girl to do in times like these? My angel, would never be the person I once loved. He'd hurt me, and I knew he was sorry for it but. . . I groaned and stood up. " Alright, Laurent, get over here and let me kick your ass." I yelled and got in a fighting stance. A little one on one always helped clear up the mind. And I certainly needed my mind cleared.

**A/N, short update. I know, so sorry. Another kinda filler chapter. Hope you liked it! I'll try to get a picture of Yuzria as soon as I can. Until then, review for me and stay tuned for the next chapter.**

**Until next time, **

**Faith**


	18. Chapter 18 Thinking Time

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 18- Thinking time**

I handed Yuzria a glass of lemonade and sat down on the table. He wiped away the sweat that was lined across his forehead and took a swig. " Thanks." He said after it was gone. I nodded my head and tapped my hands against the wood. He set the empty glass in the sink and came over to me, putting his hand on my shoulder. " Are you alright?" He asked. I looked up and at him and shrugged my shoulders.

" Just thinking." I answered. He shook his head and sat next to me, his body warm from working out. I put my head on his shoulder and felt him rub my hair with his fingers. I smiled and gave his cheek a small kiss. " You spoil me." I said and watched him yawn with a giggle. He laughed softly and yawned again.

" Sorry, tad tired." He told me. I sat up and put my hands on his cheeks and pulled him to me. After the deep kiss, I stood up.

" Go get some sleep Yuzria." I said to him and walked over to the fridge for some blood.

" Are you sure you don't need me for anything else. I can last a couple more hours if need be."

" No, we're good. I'm just going to wait for some old. . . Friends to pop by and then I'll be up there." He smirked and stepped towards me.

" Promise?" I could see a small twinkle in those green eyes and chuckled.

" Promise." I gave him another small kiss then watched him walk up the stairs. The Cullens' had already went home and the rest of my tiny army were still in the backyard working. I opened the French doors and headed outside, the night spilled over me. I inhaled deeply, taking in the forest smells and the sounds of swords clinking. There was nothing like a good fight to get your body pumped. They all looked up, their faces strong despite the hours of practicing. " Come on in guys, you're all ready." I said, holding the door open. They trailed in one by one, putting their weapons in the small chest I'd found in the attic of the house. It was heavy duty and would stay together through a lot. Travis and Lanina sat at the table while Lisa and Laurent headed upstairs for a little down time. " Don't keep Yuzria awake!" I yelled when they were halfway up the steps. Laurent turned around, winked, then darted up the rest of the steps with Lisa. Travis tilted his head back with laughter. Whereas Lanina and me rolled our eyes. But, as the saying goes, boys will be boys. Suddenly a knock came from the door. Lanina's and my eyes met as I walked over to the door. They were finally here. I swung the door open and grinned. Ash, Mike, Flora and Manny walked in; grins wide on their faces. We all traded hugs and headed into the living room. Lanina and me knew them through Annebelle. We'd all been changed by her or someone close to her. So that meant we spent a lot of time together until I killed her. Ash, otherwise known as Ashley, sighed and kicked her feet up.

" I always knew you'd be trouble." She teased, pointing at me. " Starting wars, being a guardian. . . Annebelle picked a keeper didn't she?"

" That she did." Mike spoke up, his blonde hair almost falling over his eyes but not quite. Manny, or Emmanuel, laughed and sat next to Flora.

" So, what do you need us for?" He asked. " You look like you've been keeping yourself pretty damn fit." I nodded my head in agreement and stood in front of them.

" Yeah, I have. But the truth of the matter is, I need more people if I want to beat him completely. Sure, I'm strong. But he'll outnumber me if I keep who I've got know and don't add people." I told them. " I know it's a hell of a lot to ask, but I want you next to me. I trust each of you and want you to fight beside me." They all shook their heads, their crimson eyes inspecting mine. Lanina stuck out her lower lip in a pout, which earned a laugh from Manny and Ash. Flora merely sat there, her long chestnut hair brushing her arms. She was quiet but deadly.

" I'd be glad to." She said softly and stood, a small smile on her face. " You are very brave Noleen."

" Thank you Flora." She bent her head once and stepped beside me. Manny was the next to stand. He didn't look like your typical vampire. He had light olive skin instead of paper white. Most of our kind were envious. He put a hand on my shoulder and kissed my cheek.

" Of course I'll fight beside you baby girl. I always told you that you'd go far." He winked and stepped next to Flora. They turned and talked with Lanina while I waited for Ash's and Mike's decision. They looked at each other for a couple moments then stood.

" I'd be honored." Mike said and bowed slightly. He was the oldest of us. I smiled and gave him a quick hug. Ash stepped in front of me, her face blank.

" Noleen-" She began. " There is no way in hell I would miss this." A smile broke across her face and she wrapped me in a tight hug.

" Thank you all so much." I replied as we sat back down.

" No problem, now tell us all the details. We've got the time." Ash joked, her eyes gleaming in the light. I chuckled and started at the beginning.

I stepped into my room at quarter to three in the morning. After telling my newest recruits everything, I'd shown them to their rooms and Lanina took them hunting. I listened at the door to his quiet breathing. His chest rose and fell with each breath; it was so relaxing. I smiled and quietly closed the door. Then laid down next to him, making sure I didn't wake him with my cold touch. He shifted and opened his eyes slowly. With a small smile he scooted himself next to me and wrapped his arms around me. " Everything go okay?" He asked, still sleepy. I ran my hand down his back and watched him shiver slightly.

" Yeah, everything went great. Go back to sleep." I whispered and kissed him gently. He murmured something I couldn't quite understand and then drifted back off. I studied him while he slept. He looked so innocent. Had I looked like that? So young and innocent? I knew he was far from young, but still. I closed my eyes and pretended to sleep. My mind wondered from Annebelle to Edward to Yuzria. It didn't stop once. As soon as the first ray of light started to come up, I opened my eyes and jumped in the shower. No need to lay there any longer. By the time I was done, Yuzria was just waking up. He rubbed his eyes and looked at me. I smiled and tugged my shirt over my head. " Mornin' sunshine." I said and sat on the bed. " Whatcha want for breakfast?" He smirked and put a finger to his lips in thought.

" Bacon-" He started. " Eggs and maybe a side of French toast.

" Ah, excellent choice!" I joked. He laughed and kissed my cheek. " How's Coco Pebbles sound?"

" Wonderful. I'm going to shower real quick and I'll be down." I shook my head and kissed him again before heading down the steps. Everyone was gathered around the table talking about our plans of action.

" I say we surprise them. Jump when they're not looking and scare the shit out of Mitchell." Ash suggested, her eyes wide at the thought. She loved a good fight more than I did. " Or maybe we can just torch their camp and listen to their screams." Her eyes shined in the light. She was the mad genius of the group.

" There will be no torching." I spoke up. " Too cowardly. We're going to fight and I'm going to have the pleasure of watching my sword remove Mitchell's head."

" I like the sounds of that." Manny said. " Watch their faces as we slice and dice them."

" But we can't slice and dice them. Only Noleen can." Mike pointed out.

" We can still do major damage. Besides, once Mitchell is dead his army will fall apart. They won't fight without their leader." Flora said softly.

" Flor's got a point." Ash put her head in her hands and sighed. " War makes me hungry."

" You just ate." Lanina laughed.

" Only two muggers! My body needs more than that. I'm a growing girl after all." I chuckled and took out the cereal from the cabinet. Ash giggled and picked up the box. " Why Noleen, something you want to tell us?" I grabbed the box from her hands and growled low.

" It's for Yuzria." I told her. She turned to me and batted her eyelashes.

" You love him and make his breakfasts for him. How sweet." She sang. I smacked her hand away when she went to take the box again and set it on the counter.

" Fuck off Ash." I sighed and watched Manny crack up and hold out his hand.

" Mike said that you softened because you're dating a witch. I said you didn't. He owes me." I watched Mike slap a hundred bucks in Manny's hand and growl.

" She looked soft." He mumbled. I smirked and sat at the table.

" I. . . Will never be fully soft thank you very much." I responded. Laurent and Travis shook their heads in agreement. " Now, you four should meet the Cullens' today. And no making fun of them because of their diet." Ash groaned and pushed her black and red hair aside.

"Oh come on! One joke? Little one? Please?" She stuck out her lower lip and gave me puppy dog eyes.

" It's not every day we meet vegetarians." Mike told me. " Give her one." I looked at him and then back at Ash. She knew before I did that I was going to give in because she started to clap.

" Yay! Thanks Nol!" She cried.

" I haven't said yes yet."

" Oh, but you thought it so whatever. I could see it on your face." They went back to planning our methods of attack while I drifted off to la-la land. I could hear what they were saying plainly, but didn't feel the need to reply. Soon I saw a pair of snapping fingers in front of my face and grabbed them. Manny jumped and pulled his fingers from my grip.

" What?" I asked calmly. He smiled and put a hand on my shoulder. When had he gotten behind me? How long had I been in my own little world?

" I was just asking you what you were thinking." He told me softly. I noticed Yuzria was by the counter eating, looking at me intently too. Man, I sure knew how to daydream.

" I was just wondering where his home base is. So to speak." I replied.

" Italy." Lisa spoke up, she hadn't been talking much either. " He's in Italy. He sends people here and comes here himself sometimes. But he stays in Italy."

" Close to Volterra?"

" Fairly, yes." Damn. He was staying close to his enemy. . . I sighed and stood up.

" I'm going to go for a walk. I'll be back in a few." Everybody nodded their heads and watched me walk out the door except Yuzria. He grabbed my arm to stop me. " I'm okay." I assured him before he could say anything. " I just need to think." We said a quick goodbye and I took off on Travis' bike. Sometimes I needed a little bit of thinking time all by myself. Surrounded only by nature. A place popped into my head and I cranked the bike to another gear. It was going to be a long drive.

**A/N: First things first, thanks so much for reading and reviewing! Keep it up! lol. This is a longer chapter I think so that's good. Okay, second thing, I need to know if you guys would be happy with just this story and then the end of everything, or if you'd want a third one. I want to know, simply because I can go two ways with this. I can end it with Forever is a long time, or further another plot for a third one. Let me know what you think! Also, for those of you who read Silent Lucidity, I'm sorry the chapters are so short. It's just that was only meant to be a one-shot but people really liked it and wanted more. So, I'm kind of making things work as I go. So, I'm going to take a slight break, only like maybe two days, to outline my stories and get everything straightned in all my stories so hopefully I can make them longer! That's my plan anyways haha. I swear, it will NOT be a long break. Like I said, two days tops. Well, let me know your thoughts, etc and I will see you for chapter 19! **

**Until next time, **

**Faith**


	19. Chapter 19 The price of war

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 19- The price of war**

The stream rushed down in front of me. Water rippled back and forth; I could even see the fish swimming calmly. I loved coming here, it was my own meadow. There were beautiful, lush trees and green grass everywhere. I came here to think many times. Mostly about Edward, but about other things too. It was a place where I could just close my eyes and shut everything away. I pulled my knees up to my chest and laid my head atop them. Then I closed my eyes and just listened. Listened to the creatures in the forest, to the water. To everything. I could feel it, all my problems slowly fading away. It was in times like these, I could put any problem together. Solve anything. But what was going on now seemed almost unsolvable. I knew it wasn't. I just didn't like what the end result was going to be. The truth was, we couldn't go to Italy without having some backup there. A place to stay. That was Mitchell's territory and if we just went there blind he'd slaughter us. Or rather, wound us pretty badly. Ultimately, we needed the Volturi's help. And I knew they would, but at what price? I sighed and opened my eyes. I heard Edward before I saw him. He stepped out of the trees, a wary smile on his face. " Sorry, I didn't think anyone else would be here." He said sheepishly. I shrugged my shoulders and patted the seat next to me.

" Just because we're not dating at the moment doesn't mean we can't talk." I replied quietly. He sat down and looked at the stream in front of us.

" It's nice here." He whispered. I nodded my head and smiled.

" Yeah it is. How did you find it?"

" I was wandering one day, came over it. How did you?"

" Same, the first day I moved here. It reminded me of the-" I paused. It was always best not to bring up the past. Damn my mouth. " The meadow." I finished. I figured why not; I hated leaving things unfinished.

" Yeah. . . It reminds me of that too." He threw a pebble into the stream in front of us and watched it sink. I licked my lips and stood up.

" Well, it's been nice." I started and went to run when he grabbed my hand. I looked down at him and those topaz eyes. I could practically feel my dead heart melt. Damn him and those eyes.

" Stay for a while longer?" He asked, his eyes burning into mine. I groaned and sat back down. " What were you thinking about?"

" The war." I answered simply. " Our next move to be specific." I pulled some grass out of the ground and threw it in the air; then watched the breeze carry it away.

" What did you come up with?" He questioned. I knew he wasn't going to let up, so I sat back. Might as well tell him everything.

" We're going to have to stay at Volterra. We need an alliance that can provide a shelter and. . . Really I don't want to lose them, forbid we lose."

" Why? They're killers!" He exclaimed. I looked at him seriously.

" So am I. . ." I said calmly. " And besides, they do their job well. They keep vampires in check. Well, most vampires. Obviously there's loons like Mitchell that get past them but. . . I digress."

" I still don't think we should stay with them. Become their ally."

" Then don't come." I stood up again and wiped the grass off me. " Truth be told, I don't really want you there anyways." He darted up beside me. His eyes turning darker. I rolled mine, I knew he would take that the wrong way.

" Why? I'm fully capable-" I put a finger to his lips, silencing him.

" I don't want you getting hurt." I whispered. " I wish you would stay. But I can't stop you from going." I removed my finger and cleared my throat. His eyes changed back to their normal color and he smirked.

" Don't want me getting hurt eh?" He teased.

" You know, you make me very angry sometimes." He chuckled and stepped closer to me.

" Truth be told, I don't want you going either. I don't want you getting hurt. I don't think I'll ever stop worrying about you Bella." I scoffed and started to walk through the trees at a brisk pace. Who was he kidding? He couldn't have been too worried when he left me all alone. I decided I could pick up Travis' bike at another time. I just wanted to run away at the moment. " What? What did I say?" He asked, keeping his pace beside mine.

" Nothing, you said nothing." I replied, shutting him out. It's what I did. Things got tough or too emotional for my liking I shut them out. I numb myself.

" No, don't say that. Tell me!" He grabbed my arm and whirled me around. I smacked right into his chest, of course it didn't affect him at all. I ripped my arm out of his grasp.

" Edward, it was nothing." I told him calmly. " Now, never grab me again or I'll hurt you." He rolled his eyes and ran after me once I took off.

" You're the liar now Bella!" He yelled. I looked back and smirked. I was faster than him. Instead of worrying about everything; I decided to have a little fun.

" Bet you a hundred bucks I beat you to my house." A grin broke through his face and just like that, our little tiff disappeared.

" You're on!" He exclaimed and turned his pace up. I smiled and pushed myself. It was like running on wind we were going so fast. When I finally stopped in front of the house, I saw I was a little bit ahead Edward. He scowled and took out his wallet. I tilted my head back with laughter and help out my palm.

" Pay up buddy." I laughed. He put a one hundred dollar bill in my hand; I, in turn, put it in my jean pocket. He was still scowling when I opened my door. " Come on, don't be a sore loser."

" I'm not." He mumbled and walked in. I followed him inside, closing the door behind me. To our surprise, everyone was crowded in the living room. His face instantly hardened when he saw Esme holding her arm. " What happened?" He asked. I rushed over to her and inspected her arm. She showed me the gash in her arm and I felt my blood run cold. Well. . . Figuratively of course.

" There was an attack on the house." Carlisle explained. I looked around and saw that Rosalie had a small cut too.

" How did they break your skin?" I snapped. I was in no mood for being nice. I was getting sick of them attacking us. That was it.

" It was the man. The other guardian." Alice answered. " He was the leader of the attack. He got away. We managed to kill everyone else." I groaned and fell on the couch. Lanina's face was hard.

" Nol, we gotta do something. They're going to keep coming after us. And, I'm getting sick of it. We need to strike them back. Have a victory of our own." She told me.

" We killed their men, isn't that victory enough?" Jasper cut in. I looked at him and shook my head no.

" No, because they were still able to wound ours. Besides, they shouldn't even be here as often as they are." Yuzria sat beside me and put an arm around my shoulder. His gaze was fixed on Edward. I let if go, I didn't think they would try anything with me in the room. Simply because, I'd kick both of their asses if they did. I noticed that my newest recruits weren't there and groaned. " Where are they?" I asked Lanina, she'd know what I was talking about.

" Basement." She responded simply. Then she walked away and opened the basement door. " Get up here!" She yelled. " Noleen needs to talk to us!" I heard them rush up. The Cullens' were giving each other confused glances. Oh yeah, I hadn't told them about everything yet. Oops. Manny, Flora, Mike and Ash stepped into the living room, their crimson eyes on mine instantly.

" What's up?" Ash asked, her hands on her hips. She eyed the Cullens' and smiled. Her teeth glittering. " Oo, is this the other part of your army? The uh. . . Animal eaters?" I nodded my head and she smiled even bigger. " Tell me, is chicken really the other white meat?" She teased to Carlisle. Lanina chuckled quietly, as did Travis. I saw Manny grinning and watched him elbow Mike.

" I wonder if they could even catch a human." He joked. It was my turn to laugh. Edward turned his gaze to me, a frown on his face. I bit my lip and shrugged my shoulders. What could I say? It was funny. Carlisle stood up, his hand on his head.

" Bella. . . When were you going to tell us you brought more. . . People into this." I scoffed and stood up.

" You mean more people drinkers?" I said to him. " Just say what you mean Carlisle, don't beat around the bush. It's annoying." I muttered and stepped in the center of the room. " I brought them into this because they are some of the strongest vampires I know. They'll kick ass with one arm and one leg. I need them. And. . .They're my friends." They gave a slight cheer and patted me on the back. " And if you don't like having them around, you're really not going to like what I have to tell you." He sighed and walked up to me.

" What?" He asked, his eyes tired. I knew he was worried about Esme. It was understandable.

" We are going to Volterra. I've decided to accept their alliance." I closed my eyes as soon as the bickering started. It was like a drum pounding in my head. I put a finger to my temple and massaged it gently. I knew this wouldn't go over well. I sat down and let them argue. The human drinkers against the animal drinkers. Yuzria rubbed my shoulders gently and kissed my cheek.

" How are you going to stop them?" He said quietly in my ear. I closed my eyes and leaned my head against him. He was so warm.

" No clue." I whispered. " None. Maybe I'll just let them kill each other. It would make my life easier." He chuckled and stroked my cheek softly.

" You can't do that. Come on, be the leader. You are the one leading this army. Show them that." I opened my eyes and shook my head. He was right. I had to assert myself. I stood up and let out a huge yell. All the arguing stopped and everyone looked at me. I smiled and winked at Yuzria.

" Now that I have you attention-" I began. " Shut the fuck up and let me talk. We have to do this. The truth is the Volturi are damn good at their job. They keep vampires in line and I wouldn't want anyone else taking over. They're good at what they do. And I know they'll provide everything they need. Hell, they may even fight beside us. Lord knows we could use that."

" But what will they ask in return is what's at stake here." Emmett told me quietly. " They'll want something from you."

" They probably will. . . But I'll come to that when the time comes. Until now, Lanina book us all plane tickets. I'm sure Aro will be glad with our visit. He has the room and will accept us in. Get packed. We're leaving as soon as possible." The Cullens' left to their house after getting a potion from Yuzria to help heal Esme faster. I was sitting on the couch next to quiet Flora. She put a hand on top of mine and smiled softly.

" You're a good leader." She told me. I smiled and nodded my head.

" I am ain't I?" She laughed and stood up.

" See, that's why you were chosen." And with that said, she walked upstairs to pack. I leaned against the back of the couch and closed my eyes. Before I knew it, I was fast asleep.

**A/N Hope you liked this chapter! It's long! Yay! lol. Umm, I haven't gotten a picture yet, but Yuzria looks like Jared Pedalecki except he's got green eyes and black curly hair. But he has the same build and face. Hope that helps, that's how I picture him at least. Now, let's see. Oh yeah, I have the next 5 chapters of every story on here outlined. So I should have no problem getting the updates out here. Again, hope you liked this chapter, I enjoyed writing it! Remember to review, because it makes me happy hehe. And a happy author is a good author! haha. Oh! If you want to check out some of my original poems go to fictionpress under the name losingmyfaith, same as this one. Okay, I've decided to make a third one of this series and make it a triology. Just like Sage. haha. What will it be called? I have no clue yet. I'm just planning the plot and main details at the moment. So, that means more bad ass Bella! Okay, this is getting to be a long note, so I'm gonna go!**

**Until next time, **

**Faith**


	20. Chapter 20 Volterra

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 20- Volterra**

I gripped my seat as the plane lurched forward. I knew there was a reason I hated flying. Stupid turbulence. " It's at times like these I really wish I could run on water." I muttered. Yuzria was fast asleep beside me; Ash was taunting me on the other.

" Big bad Noleen is scared of heights? Poor baby." She mocked. I growled low enough so no human would hear it and looked at her.

" If the plane crashes, I'm using you to break my fall." She laughed and waved her hand nonchalantly.

" You know I'm just playing. But, as I was saying, we're going to need a lot more soldiers. I mean, Mitchell is bound to have a huge army. He is trying to take over Volterra after all. He's only coming after you because-"

" Because I'm the biggest obstacle in his way." I finished for her. She nodded her head and took a bottle of blood out of her purse. " How did you sneak that on?" I questioned her in disbelief. She smiled and wiggled her fingers.

" Magic." She replied, a smile on her face. She took a swig and turned her attention back to me. " But, anyways. . .What were we talking about?" I smirked, she never failed to amaze me.

" How we need a bigger army."

" Oh right. Well, I think Aro would arrange that for you. So, that should really be no problem. And he would most likely get you some damn good warriors. Noleen, do you know all the information about this war?"

" What do you mean?"

" I mean, you may have stepped smack dab into a frigging prophecy for all we know. The Volturi have been around for a while, I'm sure it's been written that someday someone would challenge them."

" Well, in that case, we better hope we're on the winning team."

" Well, the way destiny works I'd say we are. I mean, you're a guardian. Everything had to happen for a reason." I studied her, her face was serious. She shrugged her shoulders and took another sip of her blood. " It's the truth Nol." She whispered. " You could've been damned from the start. Maybe. . . Maybe all of us were." I never thought of it that way. I wasn't one to buy into all the fate and destiny mumbo jumbo. I lived with the motto that everybody made their own choices. Some were smart, some weren't. I took her bottle and downed some of it. She frowned slightly, but didn't say anything.

" What do you think Aro is going to ask of me in exchange for everything?" I asked her, deciding a topic change was needed.

" Probably your. . .Assistance." She responded easily. " Nothing I would be truly worried about."

" Yeah, you're probably right." I groaned as the plane hit another bump. " Can't this damn pilot drive this thing?" I mumbled. Ash chuckled and flicked the empty bottle down the aisle. She elbowed me and pointed to it.

" Hey, maybe someone will trip on it!" She giggled. I rolled my eyes and sighed. Just like that Ash's wisdom was gone and the little girl in her took over. I leaned against the seat and closed my eyes. I bit my lip as another bump rattled my seat. It's not that I was afraid of flying. . . I just liked feeling the ground beneath my feet.

Volterra loomed in the shadows. Well, not really, but it should have been. It was really quite a nice day in Italy. All the townsfolk were out and smelling delicious (quite like pasta and other Italian deliquesces), which meant we had to have our lovely cloaks on. Wouldn't want to sparkle. We all poked around, trying to find the entrance. I stomped down and fell right through the sewer grate that led to the inside of Volterra. I landed on one foot, then stood up and wiped myself off. " Down here!" I shouted and looked around. Lively tunnel. Everyone dropped down behind me and shook themselves off.

" Dusty." Emmett stated. Rosalie whispered something to him, I couldn't make it out. Probably telling him not to make a fool of himself by stating the obvious. At least, that's what I would've said. The tunnel was long and dark. We must have walked for at least fifteen minutes, at vampire speed of course, before coming to the big wooden door that for some reason reminded me of a drawbridge. Maybe I was just bored and seeing things too. I opened the door and stepped inside. The bright lights surprised me, what surprised me even more was the fact that I was standing in the middle of a waiting room. I arched my eyebrow and walked over to the front desk. The woman, clearly human, looked up and smiled. " Do you have an appointment" I held back my laugh. Appointment? They actually scheduled appointments?

" No, just tell Aro that Isabella is here to speak with him. Along with some friends." She looked at the long line of vampires behind me. " I have a lot of friends." I said sweetly.

" I'm sorry, but I can't let you in without an appointment." Okay this was getting a tad ridiculous. I leaned towards her and pointed to the phone.

" Pick it up and call him or I will rip out your throat and call him myself." I snarled. Threats always worked, every time. She stood up straight, her brown eyes staring into mine.

" You will do no such thing." She replied strongly. I looked at her in surprise, wanting to push her into the wall, when I remembered I was still wearing contacts. Had to when flying publicly, wouldn't want to scare the humans. I slowly took them out and threw them to the ground, everyone else did the same. Well, everyone but Yuzria and the Cullens. I leaned towards her again, a flicker of fear ran through her eyes now that she saw the crimson in mine. ' That's right honey, feel the fear.' I thought, a small smirk on my face. Humans were oh so gullible at times.

" You were saying?" I said to her. She gulped and picked up the phone.

" It'll just be a moment." She replied softly, her hands trembling slightly. I smiled and backed away. Ash gave me a high five, a grin on her face that was so big it made me laugh.

" You are so good at being bad." Travis laughed and slapped my back.

" I won't argue with that." I replied. We were all laughing about how I'd scared the piss out of the receptionist, when all of a sudden Edward came to me and pulled me to the side with him. I knew this wasn't going to be good. Not one bit. And I wasn't really in the mood for a lecture.

" Was that really necessary?" He asked, his voice low. " You really scared her."

" Yeah and it got her to listen did it not?"

" You could've gotten her to listen some other way." I scoffed and put my hands on my hips.

" She willingly works for master vampires, she knows they're vampires I'm sure. And you're worried about her?"

" She's still an innocent-" I held up my hand and laughed.

" Innocent? Oh please! Every human that works for the Volturi is only doing it in hopes they'll change them. She wants to be one of us, a blood drinker. She's only frightened of me because she knows I wouldn't change her. The one before her was just like that." His eyebrows arched in confusion.

" You've been here before?"

" Umm yeah, I'm an assassin, and a damn good one at that. Well, I was before all this happened. I've done runs for them before."

" You've killed for them?" I nodded my head and walked away, I was sick of the conversation. I swear, the man was like a walking contradiction. Sometimes he was happy with who I was, other times he wanted to change me. Well, actually most of the times he wanted to change me. I was about to talk to Lanina when the door beside the woman's desk opened and someone walked in. A guard. If I remembered correctly it was-

" Noleen, nice to see you again." He said gruffly. I chuckled and stepped forward.

" Alex, what's up bud?" I gave him a half hug and mussed up his hair. He growled and gave me a slight frown, then winked. " You were a newbie the last time I saw you, look at you, you're growing up!" He chuckled and nodded his head.

" And you are still beautiful."

" Aw, you always know how to make me feel better. Will Aro see us?"

" Yes, follow me." He turned back and started walking the way he came. The inside of Volterra always amazed me. The lush red carpets, the paintings hanging on almost every tan painted wall, the candles and just the plain elegance of it. It was suited for royalty. The doors to every other room besides the library were closed. Volterra had at least one hundred rooms in all. The library was on the lower half of it. There was another one in the upper half. I hadn't been in it, but I knew it was there. Aro had told me all the details about Volterra the last time I was here. I walked into the library and instantly saw the Volturi standing around the room. Aro came up to me, his arms open for a hug.

" Isabella, you don't know how lovely it is to see you." He smiled and kissed both of my cheeks. " Come, dine with us. All of you." I nodded my head and followed them into their dining room, their huge dining room. Time to learn just what I'd have to give them for their help. And maybe they could give me a little more information about this war.

**A/N: A little short, I know. But next chapter should be much longer. Thank you to all of you for reviewing and adding me or my story on your favorites list or alerts. Just, all my readers, I just want to give you a HUGE cyber hug because you all ROCK! I swear, seeing how you react to the chapters and everything is just so awesome. I love hearing what you think about it. I hope you liked this chapter and please review! Again, thank you so much for reading, mwah to you all. **

**Until next time, **

**Faith**


	21. Chapter 21 One of us

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 21- One of us**

The mahogany dining room table sat on a deep red carpet. Everything about it screamed vampires. From the black shades on the window to the wine glasses on top the table full of a dark red liquid I assumed was blood. The napkins were black and the seat cushions were crimson. Everything was dark. And for some reason, I loved it. It looked so elegant. I sat down next to Lanina and Yuzria. They gave him an actual plate of food, which surprised me greatly. Aro smiled, he was sitting at the head of the table. Marcus and Caius were on the chairs beside him. Jane and her annoying brother were next to them. " Please, drink until your heart is content. There are waiters prepared to bring you refills. And, to our vegetarian friends, you have animal blood. Mountain lion and grizzly to be exact." I smirked and picked up my wine glass, then raised it slightly.

" You have thought of everything haven't you?" I mused aloud to him. He grinned and took a drink of his blood.

" Of course my dear Isabella. We simply love having friends."

" Of course, it's a great occasion tonight. We won't eat you." Marcus smiled and tipped the glass to his lips. Everyone but the Cullens chuckled. Even Yuzria. Lanina said something quietly to Travis, who in turn busted out in laughter. Aro's eyes filled with amusement. He really did like having company. Jane had a slight scowl on her face, I was guessing she didn't. Or, at least not ours.

" So, Isabella, please tell us why you decided to come." Aro said as soon as his glass of blood was gone. He waved to a waiter to bring some more and focused his attention on me. Sighing, I put my glass down and leaned my arms on the table.

" Because frankly Aro, I don't think I can do it without you. Besides, I'm technically fighting your fight. Mitchell wanted me to help take the Volturi down; I refused. Which is why he's now coming after me with everything he has. He knows that if I fight with you, you're sure to win." I replied. Aro grinned and nodded his head once.

" Ah, so you've figured out the master plan." He teased and leaned back. " You can stay here and your men can train with ours. They will be a great assist to us." I could see the excitement in Ash's, Manny's, Mike's and Flora's eyes. I knew they would jump at the chance to help train others. I decided to talk to Aro about that later. I knew they would be great leaders, as would Lanina. I sat up straight in my chair and smiled.

" Thank you Aro." I said calmly and bent my head down in gratitude. He mocked my gesture with his grin still on his face.

" It's no problem Bella. We need you." He replied warmly. Jane rolled her eyes and took a drink of her blood.

" Don't worry Jane, I don't like you either." I winked and tipped my wine glass slightly, then took a small drink. Aro chuckled into his glass while the other two tried to hold back their laughter. Jane growled and pushed her chair back slightly.

" You talk so big Isabella-" She spat my name like it was a toxin on her tongue and stood up. " But, I'd like to see how long you would last in a fight with me." I smirked and started to stand up when Yuzria touched my arm every so slightly. I sighed and scooted my chair back in. There was no reason to get angry. Besides, I'd have to fight by her side soon enough. Of course, I could kill her and say it was the other side also. Hmm, there's a thought.

" I'm not fighting you Jane." I replied coolly. " Frankly, you aren't worth my time." I had to get some dig in there. She snarled and stormed out of the room. Aro sighed and looked at Caius.

" Please, go calm her down." He asked softly. Caius nodded and stood up. His steps were quick and fluid. It looked like he was walking on air. Aro turned back to me, a small smile on his face. " Pardon her actions Bella, we'll set her straight." I raised an eyebrow, oh really?

" Do you value me more than her?" I questioned him. His smile faltered for the briefest of seconds.

" Ah, you're good." He laughed and stood up. " Please, accompany me on a walk through the grounds. The moon is full and bright tonight; I'd love to see how your beautiful hair shines in the moonlight. I smirked and gave Yuzria a small kiss. Then stood up.

" How can a woman not turn that down?" I replied. He barked some orders to some lingering servants to show everyone else to their rooms. Then he put a hand on my waist and showed me out to Volterra gardens. I gasped in surprise when I saw the vast grounds before me. Deep green grass grew around majestic flowers, mostly roses. He picked one up and plucked the rose right off the stem, then stuck it behind my ear.

" Ah, so charming." I teased.

" Of course, I'd have a while to work on it." He answered. I laughed quietly and sat down before a the pool in the middle of the grounds. The water was a dark blue, it looked so calm and cool. I skimmed a hand over the surface, feeling the water on my skin. The castle walls were high, high enough so that if we were to come out during a sunny day, we wouldn't be seen. It was beautiful, life certainly wasn't bad here. Or hard, they had everything handed to them. He sat down next to me, his black hair brushing my cheek slightly. It looked so smooth, smoother than mine ever was. " This. . . Many of our men won't make it through this." Aro whispered, his eyes on the moon.

" Mine will. Every one." I whispered back. " I won't let them die."

" Sometimes, not even we can escape death."

" True, but we're fighters. Every one of the people I've brought into this will fight to the death. And they'll win. Because I've taught them to win. Aro, if you go into war with that mind set. . . You need to be strong, confident in your troops."

" Well, aren't you the leader? I knew there was a reason we needed you. Other than your being a guardian of course." I smiled softly, there always was a catch.

" Of course. . . Tell me, what is it costing me? To have you help house my. . . Well friends."

" Nothing Isabella." I stared at him, waiting for him to say he was lying and that he really wanted my damned soul. I arched my eyebrows in confusion and felt my mouth fall open slightly. He laughed and faced me. " All I want of you Isabella, is your help in this. Afterwards, you can go your merry way. But-"

" I knew there would be a loophole." I muttered. He gave me a lopsided grin and shrugged his shoulders.

" We want you to become one of us."

" I already am a vampire." I replied, still confused. Then his face helped me figure out just what he meant. " Oh." I said and looked back out at the water. " You mean. . . You want me to become a Volturi member?"

" Yes. You'd be a strong one at that. Stronger than Jane. And she knows it. Age. . . Sometimes doesn't mean anything. You're powerful Bella." I stood up and wiped my hands on my clothes.

" I suppose. . . But strong enough to be a Volturi member?" I thought about it, yeah I was strong enough to be one of them. Aro stood up beside me and touched my cheek softly.

" Not only are you powerful, but you're full of a wisdom beyond your years. You have a strength and confidence in yourself and in the people around you that would be a great asset to us." I stepped back and blew out a slow breath.

" Wow. . . " Was all I managed to say. I'd be able to live in the castle, own all the measly vampires underneath me. Have power no other vampire but the Volturi had. . . " What about my friends?" I asked him.

" Well. . . It's not usual that we allow non Volturi members to say in the castle but. . . I suppose your closest ones could stay. Yes." I walked around the pool, looking at my reflection in the water. I studied it. I looked strong and beautiful. Fierce. I felt his hand on my shoulder and saw him appear in the reflection beside me. " Look at you-" He started quietly. " You look like one of us even. One of the perks of being a guardian, you have all the powers of a master vampire."

" Is that the only reason you want me? Because I'm a guardian?"

" No, we've had our eye on you for quiet a while Isabella." I pursed my lips in thought. Then I turned from the water and looked back into his crimson eyes.

" I'll think about it." I answered him. He smiled and nodded his head.

" Tis all I ask of you." I smiled and started back towards the house.

" Now tell me all the details about this war. I want to go in prepared."

" Are you sure you want to know everything?" He asked me. I held open the door and stepped inside, the cool air from inside the castle hitting me instantly.

" Everything." I replied simply.

The fire made a warm glow throughout the whole library. I was seated with Aro in the library, sipping some blood and looking into the fire burning in the fireplace. Everything he'd told me was running through my head. " So, let me great this straight." I said after swallowing the blood in my mouth. " This was also destined to happen. Ever since the Volturi came about?"

" That's correct." He answered, waiting for me to speak more.

" So, we're really going against an all out army. I mean. . . There's bound to be hundreds, or thousands, of vampires who side with Mitchell because they hate you guys. They hate the Volturi."

" Again, correct." I sighed and leaned back in my chair.

" Well, it isn't going to be easy. That's for sure. But, we can beat them. I'm sure of that." He leaned forward and clasped his hands. His eyes inspected me.

" Why did you decide to come here Isabella?" I put my glass down and bit my lip, trying to find the right words to say.

" I think you guys do a good job keeping everybody intact. Keeping our species in line. Without you, it would be utter chaos. You guys do your job, and you do it great." Aro grinned and sat back, his hair touching his shoulders.

" Well, that's a great compliment. Thank you Isabella. To be perfectly honest, we were worried. I mean, we've had tiny attacks against us and such in the past years. But nothing like this. Nothing like having a whole army against you."

" Then you should be kissing my ass." I teased and took another swig of blood. It was good, sweet. He chuckled and shook his head in agreement.

" You could say that." I yawned and put my head against the chair. " Tired?" Aro asked me.

" Eh, not really. My energy is just getting low. It's surprising, sleeping again. I mean, it's not every night, but still. I don't dream, it's just like I'm refueling myself or something."

" I'd love to see the full extent of your powers."

" You will tomorrow afternoon when we start training." He looked at me in confusion.

" I haven't scheduled a-"

" I did. Everybody will be training in the castle grounds tomorrow. Well, at least the leaders of our troops. I'm thinking Flora and Mike could take archery cause it's what they're best at. Ash and Mike could take over something brutal, maybe sword fighting. Lanina and Travis could teach movement, they're both graceful. Yuzria could help any witches you have with their powers. And the Cullens' could just stand by and practice with each other. They still need help on some things."

" You said our troops." I stood up and downed the rest of the blood. I couldn't believe what I was about to say. I wasn't sure when I'd officially made the decision, but I had.

" You're right. I did." I replied and put my glass down on the table. The flames danced upon my shadow.

" Does this mean-"

" It means you're looking at the next member of the Volturi." I finished for him and walked out of the room.

**A/N: Dun dun dun! Lol, so, hope you liked the chapter. I liked writing it. It was a longer one that I had to edit a couple times before I was actually ready to submit it so. . . Hope you liked it! haha. Thanks for reading and thanks to everyone for adding me to their fav's or the story to their fav's and all that. I mean, I love it. Thank you all so very much. I owe a lot of this to you, because all of you keep me revved up to write. So, a big MWAH to you all. Y'all rock. The next chapter will be up soon. Oh, and I've decided to make a third one :)**

**Until next time, **

**Faith**


	22. Chapter 22 Torn between two lovers

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 22- Torn between two lovers**

I opened the door to my room and stepped inside. The room was quite nice, it was clear that someone in Volterra had good taste. I would bet any money it was Marcus. He was quiet, Aro was way too hyper to put the time into decorating his home. He'd probably rather torture someone. And Caius, well he just didn't strike me as an interior designer. He looked like more of the silent but very deadly type. I ran my hands over the sheer black canopy that hung from the posts of the queen sized bed. I dug my bare feet into the fuzzy, deep green carpet. The cherry colored wooden furniture went well with the room in my opinion; my clothes were already inside the dresser. A couple paintings hung on the ceiling, they looked old. I had my own bathroom, that was mostly a white marble. I had yet to shower in there though, I'd get around to it eventually. A pair of French doors led to my balcony, which overlooked the gardens of Volterra. All in all, I could tell the room was fit for one of the Volturi. They'd probably placed me in here because they knew I wouldn't refuse their offer. Sighing, I sat down on the bed and ran my fingers along Yuzria's cheek. He was fast asleep, his heartbeat nice and slow.

I didn't know what I was going to do about my decision to join and become one of the Volturi. I knew everyone would be proud of me, happy for me. Well, everyone except the Cullens of course. They saw the Volturi as heartless killers. I didn't know why I cared so much about what they thought it, it was like a curse. ' It's because you cared about them so long ago. They were family to you.' I thought silently. Those feelings never fade, no matter how much time passed. I learned that the hard way, after seeing Edward for the first time in twenty years. God, I didn't know what it was about that man that drove me out of my mind! Every time I got angry at him he said something that just made me forget. But he was so god damned stubborn! If I didn't figure out the answer between us soon, I was going to end up going insane. I laid down beside Yuzria, feeling his warm skin on mine. I knew he deserved better, I was going to have to tell him sooner or later. I couldn't stay with him. He deserved to have children and a family. I couldn't give him that. I loved him yes, but not in that way. I just didn't know how I was going to tell him. Or when. I closed my eyes and felt him subconsciously wrap his arm around my waist. I smiled and got close to him, breathing him in. I'd miss it, the warmth of him. His heartbeat, his scent. Then it hit me. I was going through what Edward probably went through when he first found out I was a vampire. He could no longer feel my warmth, smell the scent of me he'd love so much. . . ' Oh how the tables turn.' I chuckled in my head. My mind wandered to those brief days that Edward was human again. He was wonderful, and I knew he missed it. I'd turned him back and then left him. . . Sure, he'd kissed Lynn. But, I knew in my heart it meant nothing to him. He hadn't meant it. If anybody was to blame it was Mitchell, for planning the whole thing. He'd done exactly what he'd wanted to do; he drove Edward and me apart. But why? Why even bother? What did it matter to him?

The phrase 'forgive and forget' kept popping into my mind. Of course, not about Mitchell. That bastard would get what was coming to him. But about Edward. No matter how hard it was for me to forgive, I had to. I couldn't live without him. We'd already missed twenty years, why miss more? But, I was always a Volturi member now. How would he take that? He wouldn't stay here, he'd want to live with his family. And I couldn't keep all the Cullens here. They weren't one of us. None of them drank the blood of humans. I groaned and wiggled my way out of the bed. I just couldn't shut my mind off. I glanced at the clock hanging over the bed and frowned, it was only three in the morning. Opening the French doors, I stepped out onto the balcony. A breeze ruffled my hair behind my shoulders, the moon was high and bright. I glanced down at the beautiful gardens, this was my home now. A shadow moving in the grass caught my attention. It was Edward. I turned my head around briefly and bit my lip. I didn't want to leave Yuzria, but I had to talk to Edward. I quietly closed the doors and leaped down from the balcony, landing gracefully on the grass beneath me. I walked up to Edward, a small smile on my face. He faced me, his face sort of blank. " Hey." I said quietly. " Couldn't sleep?" I joked. He laughed slightly and nodded his head.

" Yeah, my insomnia gets the best of me." He answered. He held out his arm and I looped mine through his. We started to walk along the edge of the pool.

" It's beautiful out here." I breathed. " The kind of place you could get used to." He shrugged his shoulders and guided me over a rock.

" Too bad it belongs to them, the Volturi." He said the name venomously. I felt my heart tremble a bit, I was right. He'd never stay here with me.

" Why do you hate them the way you do?" I asked, maybe I could talk him out of it. I doubted it, but it was worth a try.

" They're killers Bella. You know that." He replied, his voice strong but quiet. I looked up at the starlit sky and sighed.

" Sometimes it's kill or be killed Edward. Hell, most of the time it is. I kill all the time, I have no problem with it." I said softly. He stopped walking and gently turned me so I was looking at him. His eyes were a dark topaz. I knew he wasn't hungry, he was worried about me.

" Bella," He put a hand on my cheek. " I wish you would tell me what happened to you. I want to know." I smiled weakly and put my hand on top of his.

" No, you don't Edward." I responded. " You don't want to know. It was. . . It would kill you."

" I'm so sorry Bella. I can't tell you enough."

" I know Edward. I forgive you, for everything. I understand why you left, if I was in your position I'm sure I would've considered it. And everything that happened with Lynn. . . I know you didn't mean it. It hurt, yes, but I know you never meant it. I was angry at first but now, I just don't want to waste the energy with it anymore. I was so scared of being hurt again, of you leaving or. . . " My voice trailed off and I cleared it. I hated this, he always brought out the emotion in me. Feeling so strongly was never one of my strong points. I'd gotten that from my lovely sire. He picked my chin up and kissed me softly. I was about to give in to the kiss when I remembered not only Yuzria, but that I had just become one of the people he hated most in the world. " Edward, I have to tell you something."

" Anything." He breathed softly. I put a hand on his chest and let out a trembling breath. I didn't know how he was going to take it. . .

" Aro, he offered me a spot in the Volturi and I took it." For a moment he was silent, and then ran a hand through his hair.

" Why?" He asked, his face full of confusion. " Why would you do that?" I stepped back and started walking again, he followed close behind.

" Because, it's where I belong. I'm not a regular vampire Edward. I can help them, and I can rid the world of the vampires who deserve to die. Who need to die. There are some sick fuckers out there Edward, and it'll be me who drives a stake through their heart. Well, you know what I mean." I stopped and bent down by a patch of roses. I picked one up and held it to my nose, it smelled so sweet. So pure. I stood back up and faced him, the rose in my hands. " I know I probably signed the death certificate on our relationship by joining but-" He laughed, cutting me from my thoughts. I arched my eyebrow in confusion. He was laughing? " Edward. . . Are you okay?" I questioned him. Maybe he'd gone insane, did I cause him to go crazy? He moved closer to me and put a hand on my cheek again.

" Isabella, do you honestly think I'm going to stop loving you over this?" He replied. I shrugged my shoulders and chuckled.

" Maybe because I joined the Volturi?"

" Bella, I dislike them. Not you. I'd go to the ends of the earth for you. I know sometimes I'm, well an asshole to be blunt. And I know I'm stubborn, but you, my sweet Bella, my feelings for you will never change. Never." If I could cry, I would've been. And hard. I swallowed and closed my eyes.

" I love you Bella." He whispered. I nodded my head and opened my eyes.

" I love you too Edward. I'm ending things with Yuzria. I love him, but only as a close friend. I mean, he's an awesome guy. And I know he would treat me right. But he deserves more, he deserves a family." Edward shook his head and brushed a piece of hair out of my face.

" Bella, if you want to stay with him, do it. I've seen the way he treats you and. . .I'll admit it's better than I've been lately. He loves you, anyone can see that."

" Oh Edward, I could never love him like I love you. I can't imagine why because you're right, he does treat me good. But," I put a hand to my heart and smiled. " You're in here. Even though you may piss me off quite a lot, you're it. You're my number one man. You always will be, and it isn't fair to Yuzria that I stay with him because he just. . . He just isn't you Edward. But, if you want my love I have some ground rules." He chuckled and stood up straight.

" Tell it to me straight." He teased. I rolled my eyes and gave him a small push.

" First, you keep those lovely lips of yours off of any other girl but me. You kiss another Lynn, that's it. You're gone. No matter how much I love you, I'm not putting up with that. Second, don't ever leave me again. I don't care what the reason. Once you're gone, that's it. You're gone. Third, accept me for who I am. I'm going to kill, I'm going to drink human blood, I'm not stopping anything that I do now. This is who I am. I've told you it before, you have to take me as I am. You can't have just Bella, you have to take Noleen too. This is me. And, I think that's it." He smiled and went to kiss me but I held up my hand. " No, not until I've talked to Yuzria. I won't put him through that Edward."

" I understand. Well, shall I walk you back to your room?" Again, I rolled my eyes and gave him a slight push. Not seeing that the pool was right behind us, Edward went tumbling in. My mouth opened in surprise and I looked at him. He was soaked. He scowled, but I knew he was holding back his laughter. I giggled and walked away. " Hey! Aren't you going to help me?" He shouted. I peeked over my shoulder and shook my head no.

" You'll try to dunk me in. I'm not stupid Eddie." I sang and skipped past the door. I smiled, everything was working out okay. Well, as okay as things could be before all hell breaks loose on the battlefield. I made my way up to my room quickly and quietly opened the door. Yuzria was still sleeping, but I could tell something was up. His body position was different, he almost never moved in his sleep. I picked up his hand and sat on the bed. " How much did you hear?" I asked him. He opened one eye and then sat up.

" I felt you leave. . . I heard all of it." He replied softly. He put a hand on my cheek, just like Edward did, and smiled. " Bella, I know you love him. I knew you were his when we got involved in this. I always knew you would most likely go back to him. It's okay. I'm, I'm fine with it."

" Yuzria, I can tell you aren't." I wrapped my arms around him in a tight hug. " I meant it when I said you deserved more than me. You should have a family. I'd love to see a bunch of tiny Yuzria's running around. I can't give you that."

" I understand Bella, fully. Just promise me that you won't let him hurt you. You're too special to have to put up with that." I pulled back from the hug, why did he have to say that? Why did he have to be so sweet?

" Do you mean that?" I whispered. His eyes burned into me, like he was reading my soul.

" Of course. I only wish you would see yourself as I see you."

" And how do you see me?" I didn't like the way this conversation was going.

" I see you as a strong, beautiful, proud, loving woman. Who can kick ass better than anyone I know." I kissed his full lips softly, I couldn't help it. I'd never, no one had told me something like that in a long time. " I love you Bella." He whispered as soon as the kiss was broken. I closed my eyes and let out a tiny groan.

" Why me?" I muttered and pulled away from him. Standing up, I began to pace around the room. " Why are you so god damned sweet? You say things that. . . Ugh!" I turned to him, my breathing fast. He was still just sitting there. Gentle, sweet Yuzria. " I have to. . . Go back to bed. I have to go talk to someone." He nodded his head and slipped back under the covers. There was only one person who had enough years of insight to help me. I ran through the castle, looking for him. Finally, I came to the library. He was inside still, the fire still dancing. I stepped inside and bit my lip nervously. " Aro, I have to talk to you." I said.

The fire was warm on my back. I was sitting on the floor in front of Aro, having just told him everything that was going on. Seeing as how I was now one of his "team", I figured I could go to him for help. He looked honestly concerned as he leaned forward. " Wow, that's some predicament you got yourself tangled in Bella." He replied finally. I nodded my head and leaned back a little.

" I don't know what I'm going to do. I really don't." I answered.

" Well, what does your heart tell you?"

" That's just it! My heart is torn between the two of them! I don't know who to choose. I'm so confused." Aro stood up from his chair and sat down with me on the floor.

" I'm going to tell you a story Bella. It's of when I was a young vampire, probably around Edward's age-"

" You call that young?" I asked him. He laughed softly and shook his head yes.

" When you've been around as long as me, you'd think his age is young also. Now, please don't interrupt. This is very important." I smirked and bent my head once, telling him to continue with the story. He cleared his throat and picked up his glass of blood. " I was in love, madly in love mind you, with this young girl. She was beautiful, smelled so wonderful, she was so innocent and pure. And here I was, this dark creature of the night. I knew I shouldn't, but I kept seeing her. And soon, she told me she loved me also. Now, back when this was happening vampires were simply a myth. A tale mothers told their children so they'd stay in bed at night. No one believed we were real. So, naturally I hadn't told her. When I did however, she didn't react the way I thought she would. I thought she'd go running and screaming from me. But instead, she put a hand on my heart and smiled. ' I don't care what you are,' she told me. ' All I know is that I love you.' That of course, made my dead heart beat with joy. I couldn't believe that this young woman could love me, even though I was this. . . Monster. But, I also knew I couldn't stay with her. So one night I kissed her as she slept, and left." He paused and took a drink. I couldn't believe it. Aro? In love? " I don't know what happened to her. I never went back to find out. It would've been too hard."

" Wow. . . Aro, I didn't know. I'm so sorry." He smiled weakly and shrugged his shoulders.

" I regret it every day. And that's the point of this story. Don't do something you'll in turn regret. Because, it'll eat at you everyday for the rest of your eternal life." I nodded my head and gave him a small hug.

" I'm sure she died loving you." I whispered in his ear. When I pulled back, I could see the sorrow in his eyes.

" Well, I know that if I die in this war, I'll die loving her." He whispered. Then he looked up and patted my cheek. " Go to sleep Bella, get your rest. You're going to need it. If anything, think. Decide what to do. Don't leave those two men waiting long." I kissed him on his cheek and whispered a small goodnight. Then I got up and left.

**A/N: Whoa, long chapter eh! Haha, hope you liked it. I liked writing it. Who will she choose? Hmm. . . lol. The war will probably happen around chapter 28, give or take. I've already got the main plot for the third one, so yay! Well, that's all for now folks!**

**Until next time, **

**Faith**


	23. Chapter 23 Be safe

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 23- Be safe **

The sun shone brightly in the afternoon sky. My skin glittered like a million diamonds. I was outside, watching my friends introduce themselves to the army they were going to help. Aro had split them up exactly as I had suggested. Flora and Mike were commanding the archers, Lanina and Travis were overseeing the younger vampires with their movement, Ash and Manny were leading the sword training and Yuzria was currently looking for any witches Aro may have gotten to help us. I still hadn't talked to him again, officially we weren't broken up. I wasn't quite sure how Edward was going to take that small tidbit of information. But at the moment, I didn't care. I was ready to do some practicing with Aro in front of our troops, well in front of the first batch of troops. In all we'd have to do our little skit four times before we'd done it in front of every one of our men. Our men. . . The thought that I was a Volturi member still shocked me a little. Marcus and Caius had already congratulated me. I hadn't heard from Jane or her brother. Not that they mattered. Even Aro knew I was stronger than her. Secretly, I thought she did too. I stepped forward and withdrew my sword from its sheath. All the talking and practicing stopped and every gaze turned towards me. I spotted the Cullens in the corner, their faces were solemn. Edward must've told them my good news. Aro stepped beside me, his black cloak billowing around his feet. The only thing that glittered was his face and hands. I looked at him and he lowered his head once; he was allowing me to lead the conversation. I whirled the sword around a couple times and smiled. " You all made the right decision by being here today, by choosing to fight beside the Volturi. In the end, it'll be the decision that saves your lives." I paused, letting my first words sink in. " Me and my friends are here to teach you, to help you become stronger. Because this isn't going to be an easy war. We're going up against an enemy that knows what he's doing. This fight has been destined to happen ever since the Volturi formed centuries ago. And, as you may know, these aren't the only Volturi members." I gestured to Aro, Caius, Marcus, Jane and Alex. " There are more stationed all over the world. They will be here in one week." Aro held up a hand and grinned.

" I'm sorry to cut in Bella, but I think now is the right time to tell your good news." He turned to the vampires in front of us and pointed to me.

" Miss Isabella Swan has been appointed as the newest member of the Volturi by Caius, Marcus and myself. You will treat her with the same respect you treat us. If that isn't clear, let me know now." The men and women bowed down, showing me their respect, and let out a loud cheer. I smiled and thanked Aro.

" Now!" I shouted. " Aro and me will be showing you some brief moves. Watch carefully, what we do up here is what you're going to be learning over the next couple of weeks." The crowd silenced as Aro took out his sword. We dove right into it. He thrusted his sword at me, but I merely did a flip backwards, landing out of the way of the sword. " Movement," I began while clashing my sword with Aro's. " Is one of the most important things. If you're not fast, you're dead." Short, sweet and to the point. Soon the fight blurred, it became almost like a dance. Block, thrust, thrust, block and thrust. There was a rhythm to it, a beat. It had a mind of its own. I held out one hand and a flame sparked to life. The crowd gasped and fell back. Fire always made vampires cringe. Aro grinned and dived out of the way of the fire I shot out of my palm. He landed quickly on his feet and waved the sword around. We circled for a bit, waiting for the other to make a move. " Always look out for the next move, be prepared for anything." I added as I kicked my leg out, trying to push him to the ground. He shoved my leg away and leaped up, smacking me in the head with his foot. I whipped to the side and cracked my jaw. " Even if you hurt, keep pushing on. Pain means you're alive. You want to stay that way." I smirked and shot another line of fire a him. Energy pulsed through my veins. His sword flicked out and he managed to nick my arm. Venom oozed out, the deep red liquid swam down my arm. I pushed my sword out and jammed it in his side, creating his own venom to fall. It always amazed me how much our venom looked like blood. I guess because that's not only what we consumed, but what helped make us. He chuckled and applied pressure to his small wound.

" You managed to cut through his skin!" Edward hissed from behind me. I turned around slightly and smirked. He seemed amazed, it hadn't been that hard.

" Yeah, I know. I saw." I teased. He gripped my arm and shook his head.

" You don't understand. No one has been able to pierce his skin but another master vampire, and that hasn't been for quite some time." I shrugged my shoulders and released his grip on my arm.

" Call me wonder woman." I winked and flipped in the air, landing right on Aro's sword. He moved it right from under my feet and I fell to the ground. He went to strike me when I put a hand on his leg and he doubled over. He grabbed his leg and looked up at me.

" Did you just set me on fire?" He questioned. I wiggled my eyebrows and licked my teeth. Then I put my sword on his throat and stood up. He held up his hands in surrender and grinned. " I knew it was a good thing to make you one of us." He said more to himself than to me. I turned to the crowd, my sword still on his throat, and raised my hand. They let out a cry and raised their swords in the air. I removed my sword from Aro's adams apple and helped him up.

" Good fight." I told him and brushed some of his venom away. He patted me on the back and smiled.

" I'll get you next time." He winked and turned to the crowd. " Now, let's get to training!" They all split up into separate groups and soon everyone was doing something. I saw the Cullens had split up. Some were in archery, some were in sword fighting. I knew that was best. I ran up to Yuzria, who was in front of a crowd of young witches. He smiled and stepped aside so I could join him on his step.

" Bella, nice fight." He said and gave me a small pat on the back. I smiled and nodded my head.

" Yeah, it was one hell of a fight." I replied. He gazed at my wound and then picked up a small vial that was on a table. As soon as he poured it, my flesh began to hell. " Wow, thanks." I gave him a small kiss on the cheek and turned to the witches. Most were men, but there were a couple woman. One had deep brown hair, and the other had red hair. " Is this your class?" I asked him. He shook his head yes and grinned.

" They're great." He told me. " They catch on very fast. Especially Tori." He pointed to the red head and grinned. I nodded my head and pursed my lips. She was smiling at him in a warm way. I looked back and forth between them and then cleared my throat.

" Yuzria, can you meet me inside for a moment?" I asked. He put the vial down and stepped inside the house with me. His eyes looked worried as I shut the door. " So, when did you first meet Tori?" I questioned. His eyes flashed with something and he smirked.

" Wow, you are good." He muttered. He sat down on the kitchen counter and sighed. " Four years ago. We had a. . . Thing. But I ended up leaving. Then, well then I met Tristine and then-"

" You met me." I finished for him with a smirk. " You loved her didn't you?" He looked at me and nodded his head slowly.

" Yeah, I think so. But, that doesn't matter now." He took my hands in his and smiled. I chuckled and leaned into him, brushing a piece of his hair out of his eyes.

" Oh, Yuzria. . . " I whispered and inhaled deeply. I felt a shiver run down his spine as I kissed the scar on his neck I'd given him. " We wouldn't work." He closed his eyes and groaned. I put a finger on his lips and let out a small hush sound. " You know it and I do." He grabbed my hand and raised it to his lips.

" There's no talking you out of this is there?" I shook my head with a weak smile. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. " I'll always care about you Isabella. Don't forget that." I nodded and cleared my throat slightly.

" And I you. . . Friends?" I held out my pinky and looped it through his. He grinned and gave me a kiss on the cheek.

" I'll always be here for you." He said softly in my ear.

" Thank you." I said back. He nodded his head and walked back outside. I knew they'd be happy. They'd have children, I'd be the cool aunt of course. Smirking, I walked outside. Practice made perfect, and my army had a long way until it'd be perfect. " This is going to be a long day." I mumbled. And for a second, I could've swore I felt my frozen heart beat just once when I saw Edward's face. I put a hand on my heart and nodded my head. " I made the right decision." I whispered. We were forever, and nothing would rip that apart. And that's when it hit me; I had a tiny epiphany. Mitchell tried to tear us apart because we were stronger together. We worked better together than separated. I grinned and stepped into the sun. I couldn't wait to see his face when he saw Edward and I fighting side by side in the battle. Maybe I'd even take a picture of his face before I cut his head off. . . I chuckled and took out my sword. " Who wants to challenge me?" I exclaimed and whipped the sword around.

" Come on, I dare you." Laurent stepped forward and twirled his sword around, a playfully glint in his eyes. I scoffed and rolled my eyes. " I want a challenge Laurent." I joked. He put hand to his chest and lowered his mouth slightly.

" Why, I think you bruised me with that comment." He replied teasingly. I laughed and whipped my sword at him. He blocked it and blew me a kiss, a grin on his face. " Still think I'm not a challenge." I tilted my head and kicked my foot out. He fell to the ground with a thud. I put my sword to his throat and smirked.

" Yes."

The fire shot out of my hand and into the fireplace. Edward chuckled and put his head on my shoulder, his lips on my neck. " Now, you are just showing off." He whispered. I shrugged my shoulders and turned to him. Wrapping my arms around his neck, I pressed my lips to his. Then I pulled away and sat in the chair Aro had been sitting in the night before. The shades were drawn back so the moon could pour into the library. Edward sat beside me and took my hand, placing it gently to his lips.

" You really are laying on the charm aren't you?" I joked. He smiled and nodded his head.

" You are worth every charming line I have in me and more." He answered. I chuckled softly and raised my glass to my lips, taking a small sip of the blood inside. I needed every drop I could get. My energy level was low from the all day training. I'd worked so hard my body almost hurt. Almost being the key word.

" I won't argue with that." I replied after swallowing. " Have you thought about if you're going to stay here or not?" He sighed and lowered his gaze to the carpet.

" I hate to leave my family," He began quietly. Then he lifted his topaz eyes back up to me. " But I'm not leaving you. If this is where you'll be, so will I." I squeezed his hand and let out a breath I'd been holding in.

" Are you sure?" I questioned. " I don't want you-" He stood up and then knelt in front of me. His eyes locked on mine, his face was serious. I watched the fire glow in his eyes.

" I've never been more sure of anything in my life." He said, his voice gaining strength. I smiled and put his head on my lap. Then I started running my hands through his hair. He closed his eyes and let out a content sigh. " They aren't that bad. . . Once you get to know them. Well, with the exception of Jane." He mumbled.

" Yeah. I'm thinking I might accidentally push her in front of a sword during battle."

" Can you do that?"

" I'm a Volturi member and a guardian. I can do anything." I muttered. " But I won't, unfortunately Aro likes her. Why, I'll never understand. Her brother is kind of useless too. Eh well. . ." I leaned my head against the chair and listened to the fire crackle. Suddenly, a hunger hit me. A hunger I hadn't quenched in a while. I groaned and sat up.

" What's wrong?" Edward immediately lifted his head, his face serious.

" I miss hunting. . . Not the blood, the chase." My eyes opened with amusement and I stood up. " Maybe I can gather some friends to go hunting the streets with me. I need to kill a couple bad guys." Edward laughed and kissed me deeply.

" I can't get over how much you've changed." He said quietly. He put his hands on my waist and drew me too him. His eyes darkened, but not with hunger. I smirked and kissed him again.

" Hold on there cowboy. We just got back together." I pushed myself away from him slightly and smiled. " What kinda girl do you think I am?" He laughed and pulled me into a tight embrace.

" Mine." He whispered in my ear. I grinned and kissed him.

" Always." I whispered back. " I'll be back later." He nodded his head and kissed me once more.

" I'll be waiting." Right before I walked out of the library I heard him yell, " Be safe." I pushed the memories that flashed from that sentence away and kept walking. The past was the past. . . I couldn't dwell on it. I wouldn't.


	24. Chapter 24 Judgment Time

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 24- Judgment Time**

The back streets of Italy were almost filled with more scum than at home in America. Key word being almost. I dropped the rapist I'd been drinking from and wiped my mouth. He'd ran a whole mile before I got bored and just attacked him. The thrill of the hunt pulsed in my veins. Lanina and Ash came up to me, their crimson eyes glowing from the fresh blood. " Wow, Italians taste so much better than Americans. I think I actually tasted pasta in his blood." Ash said with a smile. I chuckled and shook my head.

" Yeah, that was a pretty good chase." I replied. I could still hear Mike and Manny feeding. ' Men always take longer.' I thought with a laugh. I killed myself sometimes.

" So. . . You're back with Edward." Lanina said quietly, her hands on her hips. I studied her, she had her mother face on. Damn. She was worried about me. I hated when people were worried about me.

" Yes, I am. And no you do not have to worry Lanina." I responded nonchalantly. " I'm a big girl now. So big the Volturi think I can handle being one of them."

" I know Bella. I just want to tell you to be careful. He's hurt you before."

" Yeah, and I told him if he does it again I'll kill him." I paused. " Slowly." I decided to add. She chuckled and rose an eyebrow.

" Oh really?" I shrugged my shoulders and stepped over the body of my meal.

" Well, not in so many words. But he gets the point. Believe me." Ash giggled and elbowed Lanina teasingly.

" He must be pretty good in the sack if she's going through all this trouble." She laughed. Manny walked up and put an arm around my shoulders.

" Don't talk about my Bella like that." He told her and winked at me. I rolled my eyes and stepped out of his grasp.

" Okay, listen, all of you. I appreciate the fact that you guys are so concerned about me, but I can take care of myself." I assured them. " Now, let's head back to the. . . I don't really know how to describe Volterra except as a big castle. And that just sounds way too medieval for me."

" Better get used to it. Seeing as how you live there now." Mike pointed out to me. I pursed my lips in thought and nodded my head. He had a point.

" Still doesn't mean I have to call it a castle." Mike was about to say something else when all of a sudden an arrow came flying out of nowhere. We all took out our swords and went back to back. " Where did it come from?" I asked no one in particular.

" I wanna say-" Lanina was cut off when another arrow came shooting towards us; and hit Mike. He dropped to the ground and let out a cry. I pulled out the arrow and glanced at it; dead man's blood coated it.

" Shit." I muttered. " Watch him Lan." She shook her head and put her hand to his wound. Another arrow came whizzing be, but I caught it before it hit me in the back. " Where the hell are they coming from?" I shouted. I was getting a tad pissed off. I didn't like not knowing where the enemy was. Gave them an advantage. I didn't like them having an advantage. I wanted the advantage on them.

" No idea!" Manny exclaimed, his back against mine.

" Okay, watch my back. I'm going to go find out."

" No need to tell me, I know." I nodded my head and ducked. I did a quick roll and swung my sword around my head; hoping to hit something. And sure enough, a man screamed and fell in front of me. I grabbed his throat and pulled him to me, making sure there were no arrows heading at me.

" Where's your leader?" I growled. He didn't need to answer. Tristine walked out of the shadows, a smile on her face.

" Looks like you're out-numbered." She said, her grin widening. I looked around and saw twenty vampires surrounding my four. Well, three. Mike wasn't really up to fighting at the moment, seeing as how he was slowly dying. I smirked and stood up.

" That's what you think." I snarled and then shot a line of fire at five of the soldiers. I ignored their screams and faced her. I felt great pleasure as soon as I saw her eyes were opened as wide as a deer in headlights. I kicked the arrow out of her hand and put her in a tight headlock. Lanina, Manny and Ash killed the rest of her tiny army. " Never underestimate me." I said in her ear.

" Because you will always end up on the short end of the stick." Manny took over for me as her guard as I stepped towards Mike. He was leaning against the wall of a building, pain showing on his pale face.

" It hurts like a bitch." He told me through gritted teeth.

" I know. Hold on." I put my hand on his wound and concentrated, trying to tap into my inner guardian. The same feeling ran through me as when I'd healed Travis. The light appeared, a strong almost blinding white light. I watched the blood that had gotten into his system slowly leak out and the wound close. Mike let out a content sigh and smiled. " There's a reason I'm called the guardian. Now, let's get back to the castle."

" I thought you weren't going to call it a castle." He teased.

" Changed my mind." I turned towards Tristine and tapped her face slightly. " I am sure you are so excited about seeing Yuzria again. I know if you need to be tortured he will jump at the idea." I leaned closer, so I was next to her ear. " And if he's as good as torturing as he is at other things, you're in for a lot of trouble." I pulled away and winked, then started the journey back home.

I sat on the table as Aro talked to Tristine, trying to get information out of her. " Just use your powers." I told him with a sigh. He turned to me and smiled.

" I don't want to have to force the truth out of her Isabella." He replied. I rolled my eyes and walked over to her.

" Well, I don't have a problem with force." I mumbled. I put a hand on her stomach and conjured up my fire power. She looked at me, confused for a second. " Wait for it, it's less dramatic than if it happened right away but eh. What can you do." She went to say something, but then a scream slipped out of her mouth. I held my hand in place, even with her squirming. " Now tell us why you attacked us. Where's Mitchell?" She clenched her fists and spat in my face. I wiped it off with my free hand and laughed. " You'll have to try harder than that." She tried to bite back her screams, but to no avail. I pushed my hand down and her wail could've made my blood curl. If I had blood that is.

" Okay!" She yelled. " I'll talk to you, just get the fuck off me!" I took my hand away and stepped back slightly. Aro was chuckling from behind me.

" You were testing me." I stated. He nodded his head and patted my back.

" You passed." He assured me.

" I know that. I also know that you most likely did touch her." Again, all I got was a nod. " Oh well, I'm making her talk anyways. Alright Tristine, talk."

" An island. He's on an island." I arched an eyebrow in confusion.

" What's he doing on an island?" I questioned her.

" It's where the war is supposed to take place. Away from-"

" From people." I finished for her. She swallowed and shook her head. " Alright, now give me one hell of a good reason why I shouldn't kill you right here. Right now." She snarled and I grabbed her throat. " You aren't in the position to be showing those teeth at me. I'll rip them out."

" He'll kill you. He loves me." She growled. I laughed and let go of her.

" Is that what he told you? And you believed it!" I exclaimed. " He's playing you! Just like you played Yuzria. I'd think you were smart enough to see that. That's what happens when I assume I guess."

" He wasn't lying to me."

" Sure he wasn't. Now, what island is he on?" She struggled against the ropes that were holding her to the chair. They were charmed of course. She could struggle all she wanted, she wouldn't get out.

" He loves me!" She cried. " He wouldn't lie to me!" I sighed and rested my hands on the chair arms.

" Yes, he would. He used you, and you fell for it. You are a stupid human, most of them are. So don't feel bad." She shook her head and tears fell down her face.

" No, he was going to change me. So we'd be together forever." I studied her face, she actually thought he loved her. I pushed up off the chair and faced Aro. She was still crying from behind us.

" What are we going to do?" I asked him. He shrugged his shoulders and looked at her.

" We should just kill her." He told me. I looked back at her.

" She was stupid. . ." I whispered. " She shouldn't be condemned to death because she happened to believe the wrong guy."

" You feel sorry for her?" His eyes inspected me. I slowly nodded my head, I didn't know why. But I did.

" Why don't we just wait. See what else we can flesh out of her."

" It's your call." He replied easily and sat down. " I could care less, she's only a human." Yuzria walked into the room, his face solemn. He didn't even glance at Tristine.

" Yuzria," She whispered, but then quieted down.

" Can I talk to you?" He asked. I nodded my head and followed him into the hall. He crossed his arms and focused his gaze on a painting; I knew something was up. " I don't want you to kill her." He said quietly. " I don't think. . ." I put a hand on his cheek and moved his face so he was looking at me.

" I wasn't going to. Not yet at least." I replied. His mouth opened in surprise. " I feel sorry for her." I cleared up for him. He shut his mouth and nodded his head.

" Yeah, I do too. So, what are you going to do with her?"

" No clue. Come up with something for me." I smirked and patted his cheek, then walked away. Being a Volturi member was fun at times, but not when it meant I'd have to kill humans who didn't really deserve it. Aro and I were going to have a little chat. I, meanwhile, couldn't believe I was getting a damn conscience. They only ended up getting in the way and affected judgment. ' But without them, you truly are a monster.' I thought silently. And I really didn't want to be a monster.

**A/N: Well, I hope you liked this chapter. It was okay in my opinion. Thanks for reviewing, but for everybody who DOESN'T, please do. Because I love to know what my "fans" ( I don't really know what else to call you guys lol, if you have an ideas tell me) are thinking about my stories. So please, please, please KEEP REVIEWING! lol. I love y'all who read this. Truly, I mean, y'all are awesome. Now, I'm still trying to come up with a title for the 3rd story. Not sure yet. And, I may have to put Hot desires with a cold heart on a small break. I'm not sure if I'm going to or not. I still gotta think about it. So, just in case anyone who reads this reads that, I'm just letting you know. I think that's it. Again, if you want to read some of my original work, go to fictionpress and look under the pen name of losingmyfaith. Same as here. **

**Until next time,**

**Faith**


	25. Chapter 25 Noleen sends a letter

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me. Warning, this chapter is a tad mature. So, be prepared ;).**

**Chapter 25- Noleen sends a letter**

The grass tickled my skin as I stared up at the stars. Edward's arm was around my waist. I scooted closer to him, so we were almost joined together, slowly melting into one being. I trailed my finger up and down his stomach, feeling the muscle underneath. His fingers were brushing through my hair and he was humming my lullaby softly. A breeze blew past, rustling the trees. " I don't know what to do about Tristine." I breathed, my gaze still on the stars. He sat his head in his free hand and kissed my cheek.

" What do you mean?" He asked, a piece of his copper hair falling over his eye. I smiled, pushing it away and stared into his light topaz eyes.

" She made a stupid decision. I mean. . . I don't know." I mumbled. " Aro thinks we should kill her."

" And you think you should give her another chance, see if she makes different choices with her life."

" Yeah, in a way. I mean, it's like part of me wants to just get rid of her. And there's another part of me that wants to give her another chance."

" Which part do you think will win?" I sighed and looked back to the night sky. Like maybe I'd find my answer somewhere up there. I knew what was most likely going to happen. Tristine was going to be killed. I hated this, that ever since the Cullens came back into my life I worried about my decisions. Before, I would've killed her without a thought because she almost killed Mike. That would have been the only thing on my mind. That she almost killed my friend. And that would've been it, no other thoughts about it. But now. . .It was like I doubted every one of my decisions. Well, I couldn't do that anymore. I couldn't doubt myself. I needed to stand strong and be confident in what I believed should happen.

" She's not going to walk out of here." I whispered to him. He nodded his head and laid back down.

" Good decision." I went to agree when his words hit me. This wasn't Manny or Mike I was talking to, it was Edward. Goodie two shoes Edward! I whipped my head towards him and stammered.

" What? Wait? Why?" Was all I managed to get out. He smiled and put a finger on my cheek.

" She would've killed you if she had the chance. I wouldn't be able to live with that, I'd kill her too." He clarified.

" Oh, okay." He put his hand in mine and suddenly I was cradled in his arms. I rolled my eyes but put my hands around his neck. " What are you doing?" I asked him. He grinned and took a few steps.

" I owe you for something." He told me. I furrowed my eyebrows and was about to ask him what he owed me, when he dropped me in the pool. The deep blue water floated around my head as I sunk to the bottom. I sighed and put my hands on his hips, I couldn't believe he'd done that. And it wasn't like I could scare him and fake that I was drowning. I took a breath and then giggled. It was like I was a mermaid or something, I could breath underwater. Well, not breath exactly. But, if water filled my lungs I wouldn't die. So it was kind of similar. I swam back up to the surface and glared at him. I spit the water out that was in my mouth and climbed over the side of the pool. The cement was cold compared to the water. I groaned when I realized my clothes were now plastered on me. So I did the rational thing. I took them off. Edward stared at me as I stripped off my wet tee-shirt and jeans, leaving me only in a bra and underwear. He smirked and took off his shirt, then his pants. I chuckled when I saw the smiley face on his boxers. How vampiric of him . He dived in and I watched him swim around. I laughed when he came behind me and started to tickle my stomach.

" Edward! Edward stop it!" I exclaimed. I knew he could hear me. He came up from the water and pulled me to him with a deep kiss. I pulled away and gave him a quick splash. He chuckled and pulled me back to him. I wiped his wet hair away from his face and ran my hands down his stomach. " You know, we could be seen." I whispered in his ear. He put me gently up against the wall of the pool and nipped my lips with his teeth.

" I don't care if you don't." He said, his teeth still tugging on my lips. I wound my legs around him and shook my head as he moved his teeth down to my neck. I let out a tiny moan and then turned us around, so Edward was against the wall. I attacked his neck with my teeth and tugged at his boxers. His hands lingered on my lingerie, his fingers sending shivers down my skin. He grabbed my waist and pulled me closer to him. I looked into his eyes and saw they were darkened with need, with a primal hunger. I grinned and pushed my lips against his. My need met his exactly. I was surprised the water wasn't on fire from our actions. It should've sizzled just a little at least. His hands wound around my waist as he slid inside. I gasped as passion flooded in front of my eyes and I said his name. He replied with mine and we melted into the dance. Our legs tangled and bodies crashed as we moved as one. Finally, I was on the edge and bit back my scream as we came. I put my lips to his and whispered my love for him. Then we stilled and just held each other. " I love you." He told me and kissed me. I returned the kiss and looked into his now light eyes.

" I love you too." I put my hand on his cheek and stroked it lovingly. Then I jumped when I heard Aro say my name.

I was wrapped in a towel and sitting in the dining room. Marcus, Caius, Aro, Jane and Alex were on both sides of me. Aro had a smirk on his face that I was trying very hard to ignore. It wasn't working that well. " Have we reached about Tristine?" Aro started, the smirk still on his face. I growled softly and then straightened up.

" Kill her." Jane said nonchalantly. Alex agreed with a headshake and sat back. Did he do anything that his twin didn't do?

" I think we should." Caius said. " Mainly because, she's the enemy." Marcus shook his head in agreement.

" We don't want her being able to leak things to Mitchell without us knowing. She does know some magic." He said.

" But you have to actually have witch blood to do those things." I argued. Marcus turned to me, his eyebrow raised.

" Are you saying we should save her? Let her live?" I could hear the laughter in his tone of voice. I gritted my teeth and stood up.

" No. I know we have to kill her. But, not because she could leak out information."

" Then why?" Aro asked me. I looked at him and licked my lips.

" Because she almost killed Mike. She made a stupid decision in thinking Mitchell loved her. One that I would let slide on different circumstances. But she tried to kill my friend, and that I can't forgive."

" Good." He replied and everyone stood. Guess the meeting was over. I shook my head and was about to go when Marcus called out my name. I turned slowly and smiled.

" What Marcus darling?" I responded and batted my eyelashes. He smirked and stepped towards me, then handed me a small dagger.

" I want you to kill her." He told me, his face close to mine. I looked into his crimson eyes then I grabbed the dagger from his hands. It felt small in my hands. I stared at it, Yuzria's face popped in my mind. I twirled the dagger in between my fingers and then stabbed it into the table.

" No." I said strongly.

" Are you refusing to listen to me?" I snarled and poked him in the chest.

" Shut up! I'm not lower than you anymore Marcus, I'm your equal. And I wasn't aware this was a test." I growled. " I said no. Find someone else to kill her." I heard Aro chuckle and say something to Marcus before I stormed out of the dining area. No one was the boss of me. I was going to nip that thought in the ass before Jane started thinking she could order me around. I'd stake her before let her direct me around. Sure, it wouldn't kill her. But it would hurt like hell.

I watched Yuzria's face fall and his eyes lower to the floor. Tori put a tentative hand on his shoulder and gave it a small squeeze. I bit my lip and cleared my throat. " I'm sure she won't be in much pain." I told him. " But, Yuzria-"

" I know. . . It's okay Bella. You don't need to clarify with me. She almost killed Mike and she was on Mitchell's side. It's understandable. I'll be okay it's just. . . " His voice trailed off and he looked back up at me. I could see the answer in his deep green eyes. I nodded my head and put a hand in his.

" You loved her Yuzria. You trusted her. It's natural you don't want to see her get hurt. At least, the person you thought she was. It's okay, I get it." I told him.

" I thought I was strong enough to handle this."

" You will be. In a few years, she'll be a faded memory. Pain heals Yuzria. You'll be fine." I assured him. I opened my arms and embraced him tightly.

" Thank you." He whispered. I shook my head and got out of my chair. Tori smiled at me, her face warm. Well, so much for her hating me cause I was the ex.

" Thank you." She said quietly. I knew what she meant. I put a hand on her shoulder and patted it softly.

" No problem." Then I walked out, it wasn't my job to comfort him anymore. It was hers. And she would do it better than I could. I put a hand on my stomach, my nerves were acting up, then I darted down the steps into the basement. Marcus was about to drive the dagger into Tristine's heart when I took it out of his hands.

" Bella-" He stopped as soon as he saw my face. I stepped in front of Tristine and ignored her sobs.

" How could you do it?" I asked her. " How could you hurt Yuzria so much, betray him knowing he loved you? Did you even care at all." She sniffled and then her sniffle turned into a bitter chuckle.

" Oh please. I had him eating out of the palms of my hands in a month." She laughed and struggled against the ropes. " God, I thought you'd let me go. Seeing as how I was playing it off that I was just a dumb girl. You're heartless." I smirked and lowered my face so it was by hers.

" I'm a vampire you dumb bitch." I snarled before I put my hand on her chest and saw her clothing spark. Her eyes opened wide and she went to scream when I clamped a hand down on her mouth. " You don't get to scream." I growled in her ear and watched as the flames devoured her. Soon, she stopped fighting me. And I watched as the light left from her eyes. I removed my hand and tossed the dagger to the ground. Aro, Caius, Jane, Marcus and Alex stepped up to me. All their eyes were opened wide. I turned to them and ignored the stench of burning flesh. " No one but us finds out about this." I said strongly. " Have we found out what island this is going to happen on?" Aro nodded his head and then told me. " Good. Send her body there. Put a little note on it for me."

" What do you want it to say?" Aro asked me. I smirked and walked away from them.

" Love Noleen." I shouted over my back.

**A/N: Ooer, that was a little harsh wasn't it? Haha. Hope you liked this chapter, I loved writing it! Now, her name isn't going to like, switch back to Noleen, she's only doing that because Noleen is like. . . The dark side of her. Bella is the good side of her. Hope that makes sense. ANYWAYS. Review, review, review for me my loverly readers! And I will see you soon!**

**Until next time, **

**Faith **


	26. Chapter 26 The day before, Part 1

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 26- The day before-Part one**

The next morning I tried my best to not look guilty around Yuzria. I wasn't sorry about killing Tristine and sending her body to the island we'd soon be fighting on; I just didn't want him to know that I'd torched his ex girlfriend and tossed her aside like yesterday's garbage. Which was all she was worth yes, but not to him. He'd actually loved that. . . Thing and I respected that. I wasn't going to gloat, even though I really wanted to because I torched her after all! It's not every day someone sets someone else ablaze with their hands! Suddenly a wine glass full of blood was in front of me. I looked up from the table and saw Aro grinning at me. I groaned and thumped my head against the table. He was going to gloat. I knew he was. I would have to hold back because Yuzria was in the room eating; probably wondering why I was banging my head against the table. Aro sat next to me, I was now on his right side. Caius moved and gave me his place after the scene in the basement. Maybe he was scared of me. Or respected me. Hmm. Respecting me was more likely, I doubted he was scared of me. But it would be pretty damn cool if he was. I lifted my head and took a sip of the blood. 'Please don't say a word.' I prayed in my head. Aro cleared his throat and instantly everyone lifted their head to look at him. My eyes met Edward's and I winced. He just stared into my eyes, he'd known something was up but not what. I gulped and then looked at Aro. " Last night Tristine was taken care of." He stated simply and then took a drink of his blood. Everyone stared at him, waiting for him to add something. He lifted his lips from the glass and smiled. " That's all." He said. I resisted the urge to throw my arms around him and kiss him right there. He looked at me and gave me a quick wink. I nodded my head and winked back. Thank the lords for Aro. Caius chuckled from beside me, his hair pulled back in a long ponytail. Yet it looked good on him. Why is it that I had yet to meet a dog ugly vampire?

" You shouldn't worry so much Isabella." He told me, pointing to my blood. I took another drink and shook my shoulders.

" Can't help it Cai." I replied. He smiled and took my glass, giving it to a waiter to be refilled.

" Have you decided when you want to head to the island?" Marcus questioned me. I turned to him and pursed my lips in thought. " I'll take that as a no." He added wryly.

" Hey, I've had a lot on my mind." I snapped. He laughed and leaned forward.

" I'm thinking tomorrow afternoon. It should take us a couple hours to get there, so I'm thinking we'll arrive at nightfall.

" Night would be to their advantage." Carlisle spoke up. I looked at him, his face was serious. " They know their way around the island by now, we don't. I would hate to have to watch out for soldiers and watch out for any traps they may have set up too."

" He has a point." I said. " I think we should send a team out tomorrow morning. Dawn. Then, we can call and everyone else can leave in the afternoon."

" That's suicidal." Marcus sighed. " You might as well just behead yourself now and save them the trouble." A waiter came up in between Caius and I, my drink on his small silver platter. I took it and then raised it.

" Not for a guardian." I grinned and took a sip. Aro laughed and clinked glasses with mine.

" Touché my dear!" He exclaimed. I rolled my eyes but didn't fight him when he gave me a small, shoulder squeeze. My gaze lingered back to Edward and I smiled softly. He returned it and then mouthed, ' Love you.' I mouthed, ' Love you back' and took another sip. I glanced over at Yuzria. He was sitting next to Lanina and they were chatting about magic. I still hadn't mentioned to her that I wanted her and Travis to also stay here with me. She was like my sister, I needed her here. I got up and pushed my chair in. " Where are you going?" Aro asked, his eyebrows furrowed.

" I need to speak with a friend." I replied easily and then walked over to Lanina. I bent down so I was next to her face and said, " Hey, can you come with me for a minute?" She rolled her eyes and put her wine glass down.

" Of course I can. But why be so secretive. You could've yelled it from your seat."

" I didn't feel like yelling." She chuckled and sat up, following me out to the hallway. Well, the Great Hall technically. It had a long, deep red carpet and paintings filled its walls. I leaned against the wall and crossed my hands over my chest. " I want you to stay here with me. With Travis of course." I blurted out. Better to be blunt than to beat around the bush. Her eyes opened wide and her hand flew to her mouth as she gasped.

" Oh. Really?" She breathed. I nodded my head and she let out a small squeal. " Of course we'll stay in this really nice castle with you!" She opened her arms and embraced my tightly.

" You're welcome." I said as she practically jumped up and down. She pulled back and laughed.

" We will rock this castle." She told me. Then she hugged me again. I chuckled and returned the hug warmly. " Why me though?" She asked as soon as our embrace was over. I rolled my eyes and walked a little bit away from her.

" Are you kidding me?" I questioned her with a laugh. " You're like my sister Lanina. We've been through so much together. You helped me survive in Annebelle's. . . It would suck if now we were split up." She giggled and bit her lip.

" Thank you so much." She said quietly. " Travis and I. . . We'll love it here Bella. The rest of the Volturi doesn't mind do they?"

" Nope, in fact Aro told me I could have a couple people stay with me. There's you and Travis, and of course Edward."

" Oh of course." She mocked. I gave her shoulder a slight shove but couldn't bite back my laugh.

" You're going to have to learn how to get along with him." I told her strongly. She waved her hand nonchalantly and opened the dining room door.

" Don't worry. If he treats you right, than I ain't got no problem with him." I nodded my head and we walked back inside. Marcus was telling the rest of the table of our plan. Apparently the Cullens were arguing about which ones would be going with me. I sat back in my seat and knocked on the wood of the table. Everyone looked at me, their eyes curious as to what I was going to say. I licked my lips and sat up straight.

" The people going with me with be Edward, Carlisle, Emmett, Jasper, Lanina, Travis and Yuzria." I stated simply. I was prepared for the uproar that followed right after. I let everyone get out about five minutes of arguing before slamming my fist down on the table. " Shut up." I said calmly. Ash stood up and stormed over to me. As well as Rosalie and Alice. I sighed and stood up beside them.

" Why aren't Mike, Manny, Flora and me coming with you?" Ash demanded to know as Rosalie and Alice smacked me in the shoulder at the same time.

" Why are you being so sexist?" Rosalie snapped.

" We can protect ourselves just as much as you can." Alice spoke after her. I licked my teeth and smiled bitterly. I hated having friends sometimes.

I put a hand on their mouths and turned to Ash.

" You four need to be here to lead your section of the troops when we call. And-" I turned to Rosalie and Alice, still not taking my hand away from their mouths. " You two are great fighters as is Esme. That's why I need you here. You can help lead the troops to battle as well as the boys can. So I'm taking them with me, and leaving you guys here. Okay?" They nodded their heads and took my hands away from their mouths. Alice smiled sheepishly and I wrapped her in a big hug. " Don't worry, I get yelled at a lot. Besides, I would've done the same thing if someone told me I couldn't go. Now, all of you need to head outside to practice. The army is already working, all of them. Some are in the basement, some are outside and some are in the ballroom."

" You have a ballroom?" Ash asked incredulously. I shook my head with a grin. She jumped up and down and then picked Mike up out of his seat. " Come on toots, we got a ballroom to get to." I chuckled as the rest of them filtered out of the dining area. All but Yuzria. He came up to me, his eyes sorrowful. I knew what this was going to be about, and so did Aro because I heard him clear his throat. He was going to try to handle this for me. I glanced over my shoulder and shook my head. I could do this myself. He bent his head to me and then took a sip of the blood in front of him.

" What's up?" I asked Yuzria. He fumbled with his hands for a minute and then brushed his hair out of his face.

" Did she suffer?" He asked me seriously. I looked into his eyes and bit my lip slightly. " You're biting your lip, why are you biting your lip? You only bite your lip when you're thinking of a good lie to tell or if things aren't going your way." My mouth dropped open.

" How did you know that?"

" I know you." He replied easily. I shrugged it off and just put my hands on top of his.

" Do you want to hear the truth, or do you want me to lie to you?"

" Why are you saying that?"

" Because, one will be easier than the other. So, truth or lie?" He looked into my eyes, I could tell he was trying to decide what to do. I squeezed his hands and smiled weakly. " Yuzria, it's okay." I whispered.

" The truth." He stated simply. I gaped at him, crap! He was supposed to want a lie! " Bella, tell me?" He said after a few moments. I swallowed my fear down and straightened my back.

" She suffered. And she deserved it." Was all I said. He looked at me and then his eyebrow rose.

" Well, how did she die?" I gulped, damn him. He was making this really hard for me.

" She was. . . She was set on fire by me okay! I talked to her about you and she pissed me because she said you were worth nothing to her. That you were only some puppy that she used. I got angry and I set her on fire then I dumped her body on the island Mitchell is at. Okay? There's the truth Yuzria!" I bit my tongue and stepped back. Damn my mouth. He just looked at me. I lowered myself, balancing my arms on my knees and sighed. " I'm sorry." I mumbled. " I shouldn't have told you like that." He crouched down beside me and kissed my cheek.

" Thank you." He said seriously. I looked at him in confusion.

" Huh?"

" You did that for me, so thank you. I'm glad I mean that much to you Isabella." He smiled and put a hand on my shoulder. " I mean, I'm sorry she died so. . . Violently. But, I probably would've done the same if I was in your situation." I smiled weakly and put a hand on his.

" You're not mad at me?" I asked him, probably looking stupid. But, I didn't care. I didn't want him angry at me.

" Of course not Bella." I got up and brushed myself off. " I just wanted to know. I'll go now. I know you guys are waiting for the other Volturi members to come."

" I'll talk to you later, to plan out what's happening at dawn. We'll meet with everyone who's going." He said okay and then walked out of the room. I sat back down next to Aro and let out a slow breath. " Wow, that went better than expected."

" I was surprised you told him. That was very brave of you. You could've lost a friend."

" What can I say, I have a pair of strong-" And just then the doors opened and the other twenty members of the Volturi walked into the room. Time to get this meeting rolling.


	27. Chapter 27 The day before, Part 2

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 27- The day before-part 2 **

I stood with the other members of the Volturi, my seat barely touching the back of my legs. Aro had told me we all had to stand until every member had gotten to their place at the table. Then we would all sit as one, as a unit. I had to hold back my laughter, it all just seemed so funny. I glanced around the room at the other Volturi members. The men, with the exception of two, had hair to their shoulders or to the middle of their back. Their skin was transparently pale skin and seemed to float when they walked. The women had their hair in a tight bun with loose curls framing their face. They screamed elegance and grace. I peered at my hair and scowled, I could use a few Victorian fashion tips from them. The room reeked of power and the kind of presence only Volturi members had. Aro learned towards me a little, still watching the rest of the Volturi members get settled. It amazed me at how tiny the amount of Volturi members there were. The diversity in the room was fairly big. The countries the other Volturi members had come from were England, Germany, Russia, Egypt and Ireland. Based on the clothing I could tell who came from where. I couldn't believe that there were only twenty six of us to rule over all the vampires in the world. " What do you think?" Aro asked me quietly. I glanced at him and smiled.

" Mitchell doesn't stand a chance." I replied. He laughed and then noticed all the members were present and poised at their seats. We all sat at the same time. Not one person was too early or too late.

" You must be Isabella, our newest member." A woman said to me. I studied her as I nodded my head. Her crimson eyes looked quite odd against her pale skin and white blonde hair. I would bet any money that she'd been an albino before being changed. The lack of color in her appearance didn't make her any less beautiful, it just made her appear slightly ghostly.

" I am." I answered her strongly. I didn't want them thinking I was weak or that Aro was wrong about asking me to turn.

" Is it true that you're a guardian?" A man asked. I looked at him and noted that he was one of the few men with short hair.

" I am." I said again, might as well stick to the response that worked. I felt like I was in the hot seat by the way everyone was looking at me.

" Show us." The albino woman instructed me. Not asked, instructed. I knew right away that I didn't like her. Well, not her per say. I just didn't like anyone who ordered me around. I went to stand but Aro cleared his throat and gave me a look. I wasn't supposed to stand. I rolled my eyes and scooted forward in my seat.

" Well, what do you want to see?" I questioned her politely. She gave me a small smirk and waved her hand. I guessed that meant anything would do. It was going to take me a while to get used to all the looks and gestures the Volturi had. Maybe I would make up a few of my own. Just to throw them off. I held my hand out and watched a flame sprout from the palm of my hand. While they were watching the flame grow larger, I took my knife out of its sheath and peeked at Aro. He was watching me intensely. He knew I was going to do something. He bent his head once and then I struck. I stood up and stabbed the knife right into Aro's heart. He winced and let out a small cry. I turned around and watched as he dropped to the floor, holding his chest. The Volturi members darted from their chairs in a hurry.

" What did you do to him!" The man yelled. I knelt beside Aro and put my hand on his chest. I concentrated and watched as the light flowed from my hand. His wound was healed instantly. I helped him up and gave him a small kiss on his cheek.

" Thanks." I whispered. He shook his head and fell back in his chair. I smiled and turned my attention back to the other members. Marcus, Caius and Jane were still in their seats. They already knew what my powers enabled me to do. " Still doubt me?" I asked the members. They slowly sat, shaking their heads no. I stayed standing and started to walk around the table. " I'm only one person, there is only so many people I can heal. So there will be causalities in this fight. Some of our troops will die from Mitchell's hand. I'm leading a small troop tomorrow. We're going to scout out the land and get rid of all the traps we can."

" What is the main plan of attack? For the whole of us?" A woman asked me quietly. I faced her and straightened a pin in her dark brown hair. She looked to be from England. She smiled and lowered her head slightly. It seemed like she was embarrassed. I arched an eyebrow and shrugged it off.

" Get rid of Mitchell. Once he's gone his troops should fall apart. Who will lead them if their leader is dead?"

" He could have a second in charge, in case something happens to him." A man pointed out, from the looks of it he was from Russia. I smirked and kept walking.

" Mitchell is proud and cocky. He thinks he is going to be the death of the Volturi. He isn't going to have a second in command. Now, are you all sure you want to be there? That you want to be on the battlefield? It isn't safe-"

" We know the risks. We're willing to take them." He told me sternly. I stopped and looped my fingers through my belt holes on my jeans.

" We've thought it through. We want to be there, to show him we aren't scared." A woman from Egypt spoke up. I looked at them, making it known that I was studying each of them. Finally, I licked my lips and cleared my throat. Man, my opinion was going to get me in trouble one of these days.

" If you step foot on that battlefield, you're idiots." I replied to them simply. That caused quite an uproar. Only my members remained calm. Well, except Jane, but Aro was holding her back.

" How dare you insult us!" A blonde man from Germany spat. I waited, then hurled a fire ball at the table. It left a scorch mark on the table.

" Now that I have you attention." I smiled. " Let me finish. It doesn't matter if Aro only kills one of you, that'll be all it takes to show the other vampires that we are weak. That we are defenseless. That we can be defeated. Who will listen to us if someone lower kills an equal of ours? Yes, you will prove that you aren't scared. But you will also create a hole in the Volturi. Eventually we'll fall apart and even if Mitchell is dead, he'll have gotten what he wanted." The room was silent for a few moments. Finally, the meek brunette spoke again.

" What about you? You're going on the front line and you're one of us." She whispered.

" I'm only known as a Volturi to our troops and this group. None of the other vampire population knows. So, if I die, nothing will be changed. But none of you can afford to fall at the hands of Mitchell. That is why you should stay in this castle, and we can update you daily."

" How are we going to decide what to do?" The man from Russia asked. I smiled and looked at Aro, time for him to take over. He stood as I walked back over to my seat.

" We vote." He responded simply. In the end, it was voted that the Volturi stay in the castle. Far away from the harm of Mitchell. Caius and Jane led them to their rooms so they could rest. I leaned back in my chair and sighed. Aro laughed and patted my shoulder. " You did very well Isabella, we've taken to your position well."

" Thanks. I'm glad I got you stubborn asses to stay." I teased, even Marcus laughed. He had battle plans laid out on the table to show me. He was quietly marking things so Aro and I could talk. " Who's going to tell Alex?" I questioned him.

" Alec." Marcus replied with a laugh. " His name is Alec, why do you insist on calling him Alex?"

" He looks more like an Alex to me. Besides, Alec is a weird name."

" I'm sure he loves that." Aro joked. I shrugged my shoulders and crossed my legs on the chair, Indian style.

" Am I really good at this?" I asked him. He nodded his head and walked behind my chair. I didn't turn to see him, I didn't need to.

" Very. You remind me of someone." He answered me quietly. That grabbed my attention. I looked over my shoulder, right into his eyes. He stared me down and I understood. The woman he'd told me about. " She had a leadership about her quite like you. It's partly what made me fall so hard for her."

" Does Marcus know? I mean, because it must be weird for-" I stopped as soon as I saw Marcus was gone. I scoffed and stood up. " Where the hell did he go? How do you people do that? I mean, I'm fast but you guys are like the wind. Poof, you're just gone!" He laughed and brushed a stray strand of my hair behind my ear.

" Old age Bella my dear. You should go plan with your troop. Seeing as how you leave in six hours." I glanced at the clock and groaned. How had it gotten so late? " Plus, I think you should try to sleep. Get more energy in you. You're going to need it." I shook my head in agreement and was about to walk out of the room when I stopped and turned back to Aro.

" What was her name?" I asked him. He tapped his fingers against the table and whispered her name so quietly, not even I could hear. " I couldn't hear you Aro." I admitted. He smirked weakly and looked at me. I could see the sorrow in his eyes.

" Emma. Emma Lynn Jacobs." He told me in a louder voice. I smiled and put my hand on the doorknob.

" Pretty name." I replied before I walked out to find my troops.

I watched as my tiny troop walked into the garden. I was sitting beside the pool, memories of Edward's and mine little rendez vous making me smile. They all sat down on the white cement besides me. I picked up a flower and tossed it into the pool, creating a little ripple of water around it. " Tomorrow is going to be dangerous. Thank you all for coming with me," I started. I felt a hand around my waist and leaned into the person. Edward kissed the top of my head and murmured in my ear.

" I told you I'll go with you anywhere." He said. I let him rub my back as I faced the rest of my friends.

" I'm not a Volturi member around you guys, I'm a friend. And, as a friend, I'm thanking you for risking your life with me. You don't know what it means in my book. Each and every one of you, I'd trust with my life."

" And we trust you with ours. You're a great leader Bella, we'll be fine as will you." Carlisle assured me warmly. I grinned and took his hand, giving it a small squeeze. " And you're not a friend to me Bella, you're a daughter. You are a part of my family. You also have been and always will be."

" Thank you." I whispered. " So much." We planned for well on two hours. I told them to follow my lead, to not go anywhere without me and to be safe. Then Edward and me headed up to our room so I could get some much needed rest. I laid down, my hair spilling over the pillow and the blankets pulled around me. He was softly kissing my neck, murmuring words of love in my ear. The last thing I heard was him singing my lullaby, then I was off in never never land, preparing for the beginning of what could be the end. . .

**A/N: Well I hope you liked this chapter! There's about six chapters left give or take. I finally figured out the title for the 3rd story in this, and it is Everlasting Love! So, yay for that lol. Thank you all for reading and reviewing! Keep it up! Haha. I think that's about it for now, the next chapter will be posted in a day or so. LOVE YOU ALL! MWAH! haha.**

**Until next time, **

**Faith**


	28. Chapter 28 Ocean surprise

**sclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 28- Ocean surprise**

The plane flew through air at a steady pace. I peered out the window and winced at the sight of the blue ocean beneath us. " I hate flying." I muttered and pulled the shade down. The plane was technically a big jet that belonged to the Volturi. The comfortable decor inside should have calmed me; it didn't. Edward chuckled softly and gave my hand a small squeeze.

" It's okay. Alice swore the plane ride would be fine." He replied. I groaned softly and then relaxed in my chair. I was being foolish. I was going into battle and was worried more about the ride there than the battle itself. There was something wrong with that picture. I glanced over my shoulder to make sure everyone else was fine. We were all loaded down with weapons. Everyone had a gun with two magazines, two daggers and a sword. Yuzria also had a bag full of his potions and Travis had a bow and arrow set. Apparently he was pretty good at it, he was a favorite of Flora's. I'd gotten a full five hours of sleep, so energy was running through my veins at top speed. The whole sleeping thing was still a little weird to me, but I figured I'd get used to it sooner or later. I fidgeted in my seat and looked at my watch. An hour was left before we would reach the island. Well, at least according to Marcus' estimates. I ran the battle plans through my head for when the rest of the troops arrived. Edward was softly humming beside me. The plane was pretty quiet, it was like we were all mentally preparing for what was coming. I knew I was. We had all drank three bottles of blood before leaving, so we'd be at the top of our fame. " Bella," Edward's melodic tore me from my thoughts and I faced him. There was a small box in his hand.

" Edward-" I began but he quickly silenced me with a kiss. I stared into his bright topaz eyes when he pulled back. He opened the box and inside was my engagement ring. He took it out and snapped the box closed.

" When we finish this, I want to marry you. I want to spend the rest of my eternal life with only you Isabella. If you'll still have me as your husband that is." He told me. I gulped, not quite sure what to say. So, I simply held out my left hand and allowed him to slip the ring on my finger. No words needed to be said, we both knew what the other was thinking. I leaned forward and pressed my lips to his.

" Aw, look at you two being all cute and cuddly." Travis teased. " Stop or I think I may throw up." I rolled my eyes and lightly shoved him.

" Shut up." I mumbled. " You're just mad Edward asked me before you could ask Lanina." He scoffed, but didn't say anything else on the matter. Lanina arched her eyebrow and gave me a questioning look. I shrugged my shoulders, who knew what went on in that boy's head. I leaned my head against Edward's shoulder and closed my eyes. I could picture it perfectly, how Edward and I would spend our lives at Volterra. Lounging by the pool while we sparkled in the sun. I smiled and inhaled deeply, he smelled so damn good. " I love you." I said softly, opening my eyes so I could gaze into his.

" I love you too. And I always will." He kissed the top of my head, sparkling with every move. All of a sudden Carlisle stood up and came towards us. I immediately straightened up when I saw how serious his face was.

" We're here." He stated. I furrowed my eyebrows, according to Marcus we should've still had forty minutes before arriving. I opened my window and peeked outside. Sure enough, the island was coming up and fast.

" Damn." I whispered and stood up. I reached above my head and grabbed the cloak Aro had given me and tossed it around my shoulders. There was a small V embroidered on the top right corner. I snickered and tied it together. It was nice, black velvet material on the outside and red satin on the inside. I glanced behind my shoulder and took a deep breath. " You guys ready?" I asked. They all gave me once nod and then I turned to the captain. " Lower the hatch." I instructed. Suddenly wind came flying into the plane. I lowered to my knees, then jumped. For a couple seconds all I felt was the wind flying around me. Then I gracefully made contact with the sandy beach. I smirked and brushed myself off. A vampire always lands on its feet. Everyone dropped down beside me, their swords drawn. Sparkles radiated off of our bodies, during battle the island would probably look like one big diamond from outer space. I looked around, everything was quiet. . . Too quiet. All of a sudden an arrow flew past my head. I smiled and grabbed it, broke it, and threw it on the ground. " You missed." I joked and turned to Travis. He already an arrow ready and released it. I watched as the vampire dropped to the ground; he'd been hiding behind a tree.

" How pathetic." Lanina said.

" My sentiments exactly." I responded. " Come on, let's go." We started to walk, looking out for any traps along the way. Travis shot down a couple more vampires who were lurking. I twirled my sword around and chopped down a couple trees quickly. The forest was dark, ominous. I stepped inside and listened for any sounds. I knew there most likely weren't any creatures on this island. They were probably killed for food or sport. " Alright, let's go." I murmured to my team. For the first half hour, things were pretty quiet. There were only a couple vampires stationed, and no traps. Either Mitchell had something pretty damn big up his sleeve, or he was an idiot. I was hoping it was the latter. Though I could deal with either one of the choices.

" What are they waiting for? They have to know we're here." Carlisle asked aloud, more to himself than to us. Yuzria threw his bag over his shoulder and then threw a potion at an incoming vamp. The man instantly dropped to his knees as his fleshed melted off. I watched in a mix of fascination and disgust.

" Ew." I finally said when it was over and the vampire was dead, again. Yuzria smiled and kicked the smoking remains aside.

" Cool isn't it?" He replied. I nodded my head and turned to him.

" Remind me to never piss you off." Lanina muttered from behind us. I laughed and started walking again. It wasn't until we'd been on the island for an hour that we came into our first attack. The vampires came up from ground, armed with swords and arrows. I quickly beheaded three before they were even fully out of the dirt. All the enemies were dead within twenty minutes. I wiped mud off of my face and cleaned the venom off my sword with a leaf from a nearby tree.

" I don't think there's anything in this forest." Edward told me. I raised my eyebrow and waited for him to continue. " It's just, it's too quiet. I think his base is on the other side of the island. And if we keep going through the forest-"

" They'll be waiting for us." I finished for him, pieces suddenly coming together. " One big trap. Okay everybody, we are doubling back. Travis, watch our backs." He nodded and took his sword out. He didn't want to waste his arrows. Yuzria picked his bag up from off the ground and stood next to me. He was sweating from the fight. " Drink or you're going to pass out." I warned him. He smirked and took out a water bottle.

" Always thinking of others." He teased. I smiled and patted his back.

" You did good. I need you, that's why I'm telling you to hydrate yourself or you'll faint." He tipped the bottle back and drank half the contents in one breath. When he finally came up for air I said, " See, told you."

It was easier to walk in the forest than it was to trudge through the sand. Even though I was graceful, I kept slipping. I groaned and started to mutter to myself, just rambling on. It helped me clear my head. " Who has a battle on a freaking island? Mitchell, that's who. The god damned wuss isn't man enough to have it on the damn ground." I mumbled as we walked along the side of the island. Well, technically it was five feet away from where we'd landed. I kicked some of the sand, only to have it fly back at me. " Stupid wind!" I exclaimed and threw my hair into a ponytail. " Man, who ever prophesized this battle should've fixed some of the smaller details." Lanina chuckled and put a hand on my shoulder.

" Think of it this way. Here, we'll not only win a fight, but get a good tan." I rolled my eyes and pushed her hand off me. Emmett and Jasper laughed along with her.

" Jasper, are you feeling anything?" I asked, cutting into their little laugh fest. He shook his head and then cleared his throat.

" Not even the wind is pushing anything my way. We still have a ways to go before I'm going to be feeling anything." I pursed my lips in frustration and kept moving. I'd asked him to look out for any emotions he might pick up on. If he was feeling other people's emotions, that meant we'd be getting nearer to our target.

" Just keep watching out for anything." I told him. He nodded his head and turned back to Emmett, they were having a conversation about something. At the moment I didn't really care. Waves crashed upon the sand, almost reaching our ankles. I stopped, I could've swore I heard something. I looked around, my eyes fell on the dark blue water. Then, I saw something move. " Oh you've gotta be fuc-" Was all I got out before at least fifty vampires came out of the water. Everyone immediately raised their swords and charged towards them. I swung mine around, the blade meeting with the neck of a woman. She fell to her knees, her head rolled beside her. Yuzria was throwing potions as the rest of us were fighting. I saw Edward stick his sword in the heart of a vampire, who instantly turned to dust. That potion Yuzria had made certainly came in handy. A punch sent me a couple steps back but I easily shook it off. I jumped up and kicked the vampire in the head, then plunged my dagger into his heart. He started to scream when I uncapped one of the potions I'd made and poured it down his throat. Within seconds he was dead. Out of the corner of my eye I could see Jasper was having trouble with one particularly stubborn man. So I leaped over to him and swung my leg, kicking the vampire back. Then I took another potion off the loop of my belt and threw it at him. It was one of the melting ones.

" Thanks." Jasper said. I patted his shoulder than faced another vampire. He managed to knick my side before I killed him. It burned slightly, but I just pushed it aside. I'd be fine. I looked around and saw Travis had resorted to using his bow and arrow again. I ran over to him and grabbed his sword right out of its sheath.

" Give it back in a moment." I yelled as I darted away. I went to the middle of the fight and started to swing the swords. Heads rolled off bodies faster than I could swing. Instead of beheading one vampire at a time, I'd now gone up to two. I felt a back press against mine. I glanced over my shoulder and smiled, it was Edward. He smiled back. Our moment was over when I saw more vampires coming out of the ocean. " How many did he put in there!" I yelled to no one in particular. This was getting to be a tad ridiculous. I looked down at my hands and scoffed. Duh Bella! I instantly threw Travis back his sword and shoved mine away.

" Bella! What are you doing?" Edward yelled.

" On the count of three, I need you to jump away." I answered him simply. I wouldn't risk him getting hurt.

" What! I'm not-"

" One," I started. There were going to be no arguments about this.

" Bella-"

" Two!" He sighed and then I heard him put away his sword and leap. " Three." I muttered and held out both hands. A line of fire streamed out. The vampires yelled and screamed. Then they desperately tried to run away. In ten minutes I'd fried the remaining vampires. The smoke from their bodies rose up to the sky. I looked at the fire along the beach and fell to my knees. I was wore out. Edward slid next to me and held my face in his hands.

" Are you okay?" He questioned me. I could hear the worry in his voice. I pushed him away and stood up.

" I'm fine. That just sucked a lot of my energy up. But the good news is they're dead!" He rolled his eyes and then picked me up into his arms.

" Edward, what are you doing! You can't carry me into battle."

" Just lay your head on my shoulder and rest. We're safe for now." I frowned, but did what he said. We'd gotten through the first part of the war. Now we just had to worry about the rest.

**A/N: Man, there's nothing like a good action scene to get the juices pumping lol. I loved writing this chapter, hopefully you loved reading it!! Remember to review because you love me, tee hee. The next update will be up as soon as I can get it up. Because action scenes are oh so fun, they of course take more time to write. And up next is the first part of the big war so-o-o-o. Lol. That shall be very very interesting. Again, hope you liked it and remember to review. Thank you all for reading!!**

**Until next time!**

**Faith **


	29. Chapter 29 The strength of an army

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 29- The war, part 1 **

Mitchell was prepared. I leaned forward and peered at his troops. They were unloading some weapons out of a tiny brown hut; a hut that looked pretty damn flammable. Next to it was a large building, a cement wall lined it. It kind of looked like an old prison. Which meant that there was probably some kind of courtyard inside. Who knew how many soldiers were housed inside, just waiting for us to come? A storm was approaching, and fast. Clouds were quickly filling up the sky. Because of the fight, we called Ash later than we meant to. Which meant they were going to be about forty five minutes later than expected. 'Great start to things.' I thought bitterly. Oh well, I couldn't change the past. But, I could do some damage before my troops came. I could weaken Mitchell's army so when mine came we'd surely kick their asses. " Bella, no." Edward warmed me. He grabbed my arm and pulled me back an inch.

" What?" I replied as innocently as I could. " I wasn't going to do anything."

" You're lying."

" And how do you know? You can't read my mind." I smiled and put my hands on my hips. Emmett scoffed and put a hand on my shoulder.

" Nice try little sis, but you look like you're about to run in there with your sword drawn. Ash told us to stay here and-" I flicked his hand off me and turned to face him.

" And I'm the one deciding everything that happens. I'm the one who controls the army, not Ash."

" Bella, that would be suicide." Carlisle sighed, his eyes pleading with me.

" No, it wouldn't be. I would be fine! I can defend myself!" I cried. Lanina and Travis came up to me, then pushed me down onto a rock.

" You can defend yourself but-" Travis began before Lanina cut him off.

" But you shouldn't take the chance. Or, at least wait a half hour, that's when everyone else will get here." She pointed out to me. I rolled my eyes and stood back up. I eyed the camp again and smirked.

" Fine, I'll wait. But let's do some damage from over here." I heard Edward breathe a sigh of relief from behind me and wrapped my hand in his. Yuzria stepped beside me and furrowed his eyebrows in thought. I looked around the camp and spotted a familiar face. The other guardian. I glanced closer and saw he was practicing throwing knives on a dummy; without using his hands. " I don't have telekinesis." I mumbled, more confused than ever. All of a sudden I saw someone standing next to him, doing the same thing. The pieces clicked. " That little bastard." I chuckled.

" What are you talking about?" Carlisle questioned, his gaze following mine.

" The man we thought was another guardian, he isn't. His power is that he can take on the abilities of other vampires when they're around him. Which is why he showed guardian like powers. It's because he was around me." I answered . " The little weasel got away from me twice and he ain't even that special." So I was a little bitter, anybody would be. Lanina laughed and took Yuzria's place next to me. I pointed to the hut and then made a tiny flame in my hand. Her laughter stopped and her eyes met mine.

" Hey Travis?" She called out, her eyes still locked on mine. " Hun, how good of an aim do you have exactly?"

" Pretty damn good. Why?"

" Because we are going to put it to the test." I responded for her with a smile. It was so nice to be bad.

I lit the top of Travis' arrow and he placed it on the bow carefully. " Are you sure this is going to work?" Jasper asked me, trying not to sound worried.

" Positive. Mitchell is going to want me to go to him. He won't care if the outside of his makeshift castle is ruined. These vampires mean nothing to him. We can take the outside ourselves, take some of the work off of the army." I answered. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Yuzria and Edward arguing. " Boys-" I drawled and slowly turned to them. " Why are you two bickering?" Yuzria held out his wrist to me, his face strong with determination.

" You're weak, you need to drink something." He told me.

" Her venom will change you!" Edward hissed. His eyes were black with angry. I saw a look of shock come over his face when I took Yuzria's wrist and caressed the skin softly. He already had the potion in his other hand.

" Do it Bella, you need it." He whispered. I brought his vein to my lips, listening to the blood rush underneath his skin. I nodded my head, ignoring the cries coming from the Cullen's, and pressed my teeth down. They easily broke the flesh. His blood rushed into my mouth, it tasted sweet as it slid down my throat. I latched onto his wrist harder, gulping more down. Finally I opened my eyes and regained myself, then I pushed myself back. His wrist was bleeding, but he was fine. His eyes met mine and he smiled softly. I wiped his blood from my mouth and swallowed.

" Thanks." I said quietly. He dumped the contents of the vial into his mouth and I held him as it worked its way through his body. I knew how painful it had to be for him. He patted my back as soon as he was okay and I backed up. I cleared my throat and bent my head once to Travis. He released the arrow and it flew straight into the hut. The brown straw immediately caught fire and started to smoke. Vampires started to crowd around it, trying to decide where it came from. I lit another one of his arrows and he let it go. It hit the man we thought was the guardian straight in his dead heart. He would've been a nuisance if we'd left him alive any longer. I drew my sword out and glanced at my watch. " We have fifteen minutes to clear this. Let's get going." I grinned and started at a dead run, slicing two vampires apart before coming to a stop. Another one came running up to me, but I kicked him square in the face before he got too close. Then I swung my sword down and moved on to the next vampire. The fire raged on in the hut; I killed anyone who tried to put it out. I didn't want any more of their weapons getting out of their. I quickly lit two more arrows for Travis, who shot them near groups of vampires. It was like dominos, one would get lit and then they'd fall onto another one who would catch on fire. It was an easy way to get rid of a problem. As I was fighting with a vampire, I saw Edward fall to the ground. I stopped for a second, and then I felt the vampire's sword pierce my flesh. I let out a cry and quickly beheaded him, but not before seeing my venom flowing freely to the ground. I gritted my teeth and ran over to Edward. He raised his arm up and shoved his sword through the man he was fighting, right through his heart. I sighed and kicked the corpse off him. He stood up and put a hand to my wound.

" What happened? How did you get hit?" He asked me worriedly. I groaned and pushed him down, then pushed my sword into a vampire's face. He fell to the ground, dead. I helped him back up and looked around me.

" I saw you fall and for a quick second I. . . I faltered. It was stupid of me. Listen, I need you to promise me to be careful Edward." I replied, putting a hand on his cheek. " I wouldn't be able to live with myself if anything happened to you. Please, please be careful." He kissed me quickly and put a hand on my chest, near my heart.

" I will if you promise too."

" I promise." We kissed again and I had to pull away from him to fight. I'd have to trust that he'd be able to take care of himself. I'd taught him all that I knew in all the time we had. In the distance I saw a circle of our helicopters coming. Ash was hanging from a rope, her sword raised above her head.

" Damn it Noleen! I told you to wait!" She shouted. I laughed and gave her a thumbs up.

" We did you a favor! Shut up and get your ass down here!" She flipped me off and then jumped from her rope. I threw three vials at three different vampires, watching their flesh slowly slide off. I winced and put my sword away. Instead, I took out my favorites; my two daggers. I twirled them in my fingers and shoved them into two people, yanking them out as fast as I'd pushed them in. While I fought the rest of our troops fled in, swords clashed and clinked together. Finally, everyone on the outside of the prison was dead. I smiled and turned to the cement wall. " How many people here like to jump?" I asked. I got a cheer from everyone in return. On the count of three we all crouched down and then flipped right to the other side of the wall. It was deserted. I waited for a sign, any sign, that Mitchell was coming to us. Then the doors to the prison opened, and I saw all the soldiers lined inside. " Prepare yourselves!" I yelled to my army. I looked around, my eyes falling on Edward and Lanina. Then on Travis and Yuzria. All my friends were putting themselves in danger, for me. . . " We will pull through this! Remember that!" As soon as I was done, Mitchell's soldiers started to run towards us. The mesh of their bodies hit ours. I started just slicing anyone coming at me. Then I spotted him, Mitchell. He was standing in a window, watching us. I heard someone cry out and glanced behind me. One of my soldiers had fallen. I bit back my dry sob and turned back to the task at hand. Getting angry, I poured a vial down a man's throat and held his mouth closed. Then I threw him through the window Mitchell was standing at. I put my daggers away and did a backflip onto the back of the cement wall.

" Thank you for the lovely present!" Mitchell laughed, holding his man up. I watched as he licked a drop of venom off his face and then tossed him aside. " I especially loved getting my girlfriend back. Thank you for that!" I saw anger flash in his eyes and I smirked.

" If it makes you feel better, she didn't scream." I shouted to him. I saw the smile drop from his face. So he did love her, well I can't be right all the time. " She didn't scream because I held her mouth shut as I lit her on fire. And I did it just for you Mitchell. Your blood is on her hands. So you're welcome." He let out a loud roar, but didn't come to me. I'd been right, he wanted me to come to him. He probably had traps set up for me.

" I am going to rip you to pieces!" He growled at me. I took my daggers back out and threw them at two of his men. It struck them and the fell to the ground in pain.

" I'll fight my way to you darling." I blew him a kiss then jumped back down into the fight. I grabbed my knife from the chests of the two dead vampires and let out a war cry. This was it. . . This was my defining moment. Either I would survive this, or I wouldn't. But I'd be damned if I let Mitchell kill me. So as I fought my way through the crowds of people, I made a vow to myself. I made a vow that I wouldn't be the one to die, he would be.

**A/N: Wow, so much action and drama. How do I do it? Hahah. Jk. Thank you all for your wonderful reviews and for reading! I love all you guys and it's for you guys that I keep up with this :) The next update will be up soon, hopefully you liked this :)**

**Until next time, **

**Faith **


	30. Chapter 30 Giving in to sorrow

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me. Warning: This chapter is not for the weak of stomach. **

**Chapter 30- Giving in to sorrow **

The fight dragged on. Soldiers kept pouring out of the prison gates like cockroaches. Thunder clapped in the distance and black clouds kept rolling over our heads. I had Flora and a couple hundred archers stationed outside the cement wall, awaiting my signal. On top of the wall was Yuzria and his band of witches. They had a shield around themselves so they couldn't be touched as they worked their magic. Everyone else was fighting with me. Occasionally I would see Lanina and Travis fighting back to back. Once I saw Mike duck down so Ash could hop over him and strike a vampire. Manny was just swinging, I knew he was worried about Flora. I even saw Laurent and Lisa fighting side by side, watching out for each other. I kept my eyes away from the Cullens. I had to believe they could protect themselves because if I saw something happened I would be vulnerable again. Wincing, I touched my side. The wound still hadn't healed all the way. Not many of my men had died yet, only about a hundred. Considering the amount of vampires Mitchell kept sending out, I was proud that I'd only lost that many. But I knew they were weakening and fast. I found myself to be quite energetic despite the fact I was using a lot of my energy. I figured it was the magic from Yuzria's blood that was running through my veins, keeping me strong and stable. I looked around for anything that could help with defeating Mitchell's troops. There was nothing. At least there wasn't anything I could see. I felt my sword hit my leg as I fought, my daggers held tightly in my hands. I threw my knives high into the air and set nearby vampires aflame, catching my knifes when I was done. " Yuzria, we need more magic happening if you could!" I yelled. He nodded his head and turned to Tori.

All of a sudden a bolt of lightning crashed down. I jumped back up and landed on a vampire's shoulders. I reached down and slit his throat before he could react. I hopped off him as he started to fall down. I noticed his men were dwindling down. Then, they stopped fighting completely. I arched an eyebrow and watched as they lined up against the prison walls. My troops turned to me, waiting for my command. Lanina and Edward jogged over to me. Dark red venom was splattered against both of them. I could only imagine how I looked. " Maybe Mitchell's realized he can't beat us." Lanina said, blowing a piece of hair out of her face. Edward shook his head and looked at the vampires who were lurking in the shadows.

" I don't think Mitchell would just give up." He replied. I nodded my head in agreement and leaped onto the cement wall. I crouched down and searched for Flora on the other side.

" Flora!" I shouted. She pushed her way through her troops and turned her head up to see me. " Can you sense anything coming from this side?"

" No, it's calm over here. In a way it's very unnerving." She responded. That was when I smelled them. Werewolves. Her head darted up and her eyes opened wide. My head snapped back to the stretch of land in front of the prison. Werewolves were slowly coming out of the prison gates.

" Over the wall!" I yelled to my troops. " Get over the wall right now!" As my troops went to jump, Mitchell's soldiers each pulled out a bow and arrow. I let out a loud growl and leaped so I was in front of my men. A man stepped forward, he appeared to be some kind of commander.

" You move and you'll die. You stay and the wolves will tear you apart. Decisions, decisions." He grinned, his yellow teeth flashing at me. I put my daggers away and whipped my sword back out. My lip curled over my teeth as I snarled. Rain began to fall, dripping down our bodies. The were's ranged in color. Some were black, some were red or gray. I couldn't believe they were aligning with Mitchell. He had to have promised them something. Unless they were rebels, rogue weres. I glanced up and saw Mitchell once again watching the action. I went to inch forward again when a blue light came out of nowhere. It was a shield. I looked up and Yuzria and laughed.

" Flora! Now!" I shouted. Arrows tipped with fire came darting over the side of the wall. I knew Yuzria and his clan would only be able to hold the shield for so long. But all I needed were a few moments. Weres cried out as the arrows pierced through them. Her archers were also able to kill fifty more of Mitchell's men. There were a couple more weres left when I told Yuzria he could lower the shield. But twenty of my men easily killed them. All in all, we had a victory so far. We hadn't actually ventured inside the grounds of the prison. Who knew what laid in wait for us there. The remaining soldiers on Mitchell's side flew through the gates and into the courtyard. I signaled for my troops to follow. My clothes stuck to me because of the rain and I was sure I had enough venom on me to fill a vampire. But no matter what I looked like, my troops followed me in. Each of them yelling my praise. Around two hundred men were waiting for us inside. I assumed it would be an easy fight seeing as how I had five hundred with me. Until around half of my men started to scream. I watched as buckets of something fell from an upper window of the castle. I watched in horror as their skin began to slide off. They clawed at themselves, trying to save their lives. But I knew it was a lost cause. I watched my men die, each of them thinking I could save them. Mitchell had used our magic against us. I was going to kill whoever made that potion. And then it struck me. I already did.

I let out a cry and saw the man who'd been pouring the potion tipped over the side of the window. Travis put his arrow down and glanced at me. I cursed aloud and faced Mitchell's men. Rage flowed through me. My hands lit up and I shot a line of fire out. I ignored the cries of the burning men and women. Instead I yelled for my men to fight harder. To push themselves. " These men just killed some of your friends. Some people who almost seemed to be your family. Fight them and kill them. Be brutal. Avenge their lives!" I told them all. I raised my sword up and they charged ahead of me. I turned to my fallen men and held out my hands. I tried to heal them, but I couldn't. Some were gone, and the ones who weren't I couldn't touch without risking myself. So, I told them I appreciated what they did for me. That they helped save lives by giving up theirs. Then I shot fire out and watched them burn. I wasn't going to let Mitchell do anything to their bodies. I felt a hand land on my shoulder. " They were good men, loyal." I whispered to the person. I didn't care who it was. But when I turned around, I smiled weakly. " Laurent, you look like crap." He nodded his head and squeezed my shoulder.

" The rest of his men will be annihilated. Your little pep talk certainly sparked a fire underneath the troops' ass." He told me. I chuckled and watched them fight. I felt like I was going to collapse, but I still had to deal with Mitchell.

" Where's Lisa?" I asked, suddenly noticing I hadn't seen her in a while. Laurent clenched his fists and I saw his body tremble.

" Oh Laurent." I whispered.

" Bella, don't." He said through gritted teeth. " Just. . . I just want to know you'll make him suffer." I put a hand on his cheek and wiped away some venom.

" Laurent, I promise you. . . I will make him suffer." He gave me a quick hug and I heard him try to stifle back a sob. " Laurent. . . Be strong. She wouldn't want you to fall apart here. Not now." I said quietly in his ear. " Hold on for her." He pulled back and shook his head.

" I will. Go kick some ass."

" Make sure Edward doesn't follow me in Laurent. And, in case something happens. . . Give him this." I took the letter I'd written out of my jacket pocket and put it in Laurent's hand. He put it inside his pocket and told me he'd protect it with his life. I knew he would. I headed towards the prison door and jerked it open. As soon as I stepped inside I gagged. The prison reeked of blood, dead blood. I held back a sob as I saw the bodies thrown aside. There were young women and children. Babies! I walked around and covered my nose with disgust. " You monster." I mumbled and shut a small girl's eyes. I couldn't stand to have them staring up at me lifelessly. I was going around, shutting people's eyes when I heard something. A small cry. I went towards it, my hand gripping my sword. When I came around a corner I saw a young woman laying on the ground, blood flowing out of her body.

" Help me." She whispered, her hand waving towards me. I knelt beside her and put my head next to her chest and listened, she had a weak heartbeat. I sighed and helped her up. " My baby, they took me and my baby." She cried. " Her name is Hope, she's got a small teddy bear. Please find my baby!" She gripped my arm. I shook my head and wiped away her tears.

" I'm sorry. I don't think your daughter made it." I told her. She let out a loud sob and I put her head on mine. I had a choice to make. I could change her, or let her die. . .

" My baby. . . She was only six months old! I want her, to hold her in my arms. I want my baby." Her eyes began to flutter closed. I could hear her heartbeat slowly down. She was dying. I started to hum a song, trying to comfort her. She smiled and sighed. " It doesn't hurt anymore." She whispered. A tear slid down her cheek as she passed away in my arms. I kissed her cheek and said a silent prayer, then I put her back down. I headed back into the main room and my eyes spotted a teddy bear. I walked over and picked it up. Something stirred beneath it. My eyes opened wide as the baby opened her eyes. She stared at me and tilted her head. I stammered. This baby wasn't harmed at all. Then I noticed she was behind a body, a man's body. He'd been protecting her. I let out a dry sob and picked up the baby. She started to cry but I quickly quieted her down. I couldn't bring her with me up to Mitchell. But I also couldn't just leave her here.

" Hey Hope. My name's Bella. Listen to me, I need you to be quiet." I said, mentally smacking myself in the process. She was six months old, she wasn't going to listen to me! I put her back where she was and covered her up with blanket. I couldn't tell there was live blood in a room full of dead blood. " I'll come back for you." I said quietly. I started to walk around more, and found a little boy huddled in the corner. He'd probably been crying for his mother when he died. I gagged again when I saw his wrists were bright red. They'd drained him. I turned away from his bright blonde hair and started to go up the stairs. Bodies were laying on the stairs. Like they'd fed and just dropped them. " No respect." I mumbled. I watched a small line of blood dribble down the stairs. I looked down and saw an empty vial hooked onto my jeans. I smirked and unhooked it. Mitchell wanted to be a monster. . . I'd show him that there are consequences to every action he makes.

I walked into the room, it was empty except for a couple more bodies laying around. Mitchell turned from in his chair, his smile was bright. I scoffed and walked around the corpses. " How do you like my humble abode?" He asked cheerfully. A vampire came in, dragging a women behind him. She whimpered and pleaded with him to let her go. He threw her at Mitchell's feet and walked away. I stabbed him right as he walked past me. He laughed and pulled out my sword.

" This won't work love." He told me, his voice thick with his English accent. I smiled sweetly and pulled out a vial. Then I opened it and tossed the liquid at him. He let out a scream and fell to the floor. " Master! Help me!" He cried. I bent down and grabbed his hair so he was looking at me.

" This will love." I mocked and tossed his head down, listening to it crack against the tile floor. I turned back to Mitchell, the woman was still at his feet. He giggled and picked her up, throwing her on the table. I noticed the bruises on her legs and arms. How many times had she been thrown around like a damn rag doll?

" Oh I just love that little trick." He said to me. My smile dropped and I walked over to him.

" Yeah, I bet your girlfriend Tristine had a fun time teaching you. Too bad she couldn't see what happened, seeing as how I killed her and all. Tell me, do you still have the body laying around you sick asshole?" I grinned and looked into the girl's eyes. Trying to tell her I'd get her out of this.

" Don't talk about her like that." Mitchell said softly, kind of like a beaten child. His grip on her loosened for a bit, then he regained himself and clutched back on. " Want a drink? She's mighty tasty! We've cut her before and had a small taste here and there. Haven't we Lissy?" She sobbed and shook her head.

" Please let me go." She cried. Her brown hair was matted with blood.

" Let her go Mitchell. This is between you and me. She doesn't need to die." I said forcefully. He laughed and stood up, holding her against him.

" But you're a vampire! Don't tell me she doesn't smell delectable." Her eyes opened wide and she screamed when he threw her in my arms. I inhaled deeply and had to bite back the urge to sink my teeth in her.

" You're one of them!" She exclaimed and struggled in my grip.

" No, I'm not like Mitchell or his men. I only kill those who deserve it. Murderers and rapists. Molesters and pedophiles." I clarified.

" Well, doesn't that bring a whole new meaning to the term guardian." Mitchell chuckled. I laid the girl down and told her to stay put. She sobbed and curled up into the fetal position. I knew she would need major therapy after this. I stepped towards Mitchell and gripped my sword. " How's Laurent doing? I saw Lisa bite the big one. I'm sure he's quiet upset." I lunged forward and grabbed him by his throat, backing him against the wall. I spat in his face and punched him in the eye. Then I dropped him.

" Come on Mitchell! Show me how bad you are! Make me quiver in fear." He just sat there, his eyes staring into mine. I kicked him, watching venom fly out of his mouth. " Come on! You're pathetic! Whoever wrote this damned prophecy sure picked a dud to lead it." He growled and sprang up, throwing me onto the table. Then he was above me, his face right on mine.

" Don't talk about me like that." He snarled.

" Why not? I'm sure you heard it plenty of times when you were alive. Maybe by your father?" He roared and smacked my face, tearing my cheek with his nails. I felt the wounds quickly heal and I laughed. " Maybe he touched you in the bad place? Told you that you would amount to nothing? Am I getting warmer?" He stood up and threw me across the room. I heard my arm crack and knew it was broken. Hopefully it wouldn't take too long to heal. I stood up and it hung low, dead weight. I bit back a cry and moved towards him again. He swung out his leg and knocked me back down. Blood pooled into my clothes from the floor. He kicked me in the stomach, a groan erupted from my lips. I just needed a few more moments. He threw my head back and dug his nails into my neck. I could feel venom start to spill down.

" What? Is big bad Bella giving up? I thought more highly of you before this." I laughed, even though my venom was spilling out and I was in pain; I laughed. While he was staring at me in confusion, I uncapped the vial and shoved it into his mouth. Then I clamped my hand over his mouth and made him swallow the contents. He gagged and fell to the floor.

" The first thing I was taught as a young vampire, was to never drink a dead man's blood. It's a poison to us, kills us slowly and painfully." I told him as he started to whimper. " Oh, you think it's bad now! It'll be so much worse in a couple of minutes." I knelt down and sighed. " You're so. . . Not worth all this trouble Mitchell. Do you have any more people alive in this hell hole you put them in?"

" Why should I tell you?" He asked angrily. I smiled and put a finger on his cheek, making him look at me.

" Because I'm a guardian silly! I can save you. I can make that blood just come right out and you'll be fine. Well, you'll still be a sick asshole and probably still insane, but you'll be alive." I stood up and giggled as he tried to stand. He finally got up, his face etched in pain. " It's ending you know, my troops are killing yours as we speak." He laughed and shook his head.

" When I saw you sneak in, I alerted my troops in the basement. There's well on two more hundred out there. It's your men that are dying." My smile fell. " Yes, hopefully your precious Edward isn't hurt while you're up here dealing with me." I growled and grabbed him.

" Where are the hostages?" I questioned him strongly.

" In the room down the hall. Their mouths are taped shut and they've all been bled. But they're the ones who are still alive." I nodded my head and then dragged him into the hallway. I kicked the glass, listening to it shatter. Every head turned towards me. I held Mitchell out and locked eyes with Edward. Mitchell hadn't been lying, there were more of his soldiers out there. And more of mine were dead.

" This is your leader!" I shouted with a laugh. " Look at him! He gave in information in hopes that I would save him. He doesn't care about any of you. He just wants to be leader of all vampires. Hell, probably everything that's supernatural. He isn't going to make it out of here alive. And because you all chose his side, neither will you. I held out my free hand and set it on fire. " Mitchell, tell your men to stand down."

" Why should I? You're not going to save me." He said, his eyes rolling back in his head. He let out a scream and trembled in my hands.

" If you don't stand down I will shove dead man's blood down all of your throats. And you will die like this. Like the cowardly pieces of shit you are! " I yelled to them. His troops looked at each other, then slowly put down their weapons. " Now get in a circle." They hesitated. But they didn't when I shot a bolt of fire towards them. Some men screamed, the rest ran into a tight circle. I held back my sob and pointed to the prison. " Many people are dead inside this prison. All of them innocent. Most of them were children. . . No doubt crying for the parents when you took them. And you killed them. You all are lower than bugs. You're worth nothing!" I spat, the fire in my hand flaring higher. " You murdered innocent people! Tell me, did you laugh when they cried? Did you tell them they would be okay?" I waited for an answer. Mitchell kept crying in my hand. " Tell me!" I shouted. My words were met with silence. " You're monsters. Every single one of you is a monster." I shot out my hand and lit them all on fire. They screamed, and they cried. And the rest of my troops just watched silently. I looked at Mitchell and I cleared my throat.

" Please." He whispered. " Please get it out. I'm sorry. I'm sorry." I chuckled bitterly and tightened my grip on him, drawing him close to me.

" Tell that to those people you killed." I snarled. " I'm not saving you Mitchell. . . Burn in hell!" I yelled then I threw him into the fire. He let out a cry and burned with his soldiers. My knees almost gave out and I heard Edward call out my name. I held out my hand and I looked at my troops again. " Go over the area, make sure none are hiding." I said and headed back into the room where Mitchell and I had fought. I picked up the still sobbing girl and carried her down the stairs, making sure she couldn't she see the bodies laying around.

" Thank you. Thank you." She whispered over and over. I nodded my head and handed her off to Laurent, who was standing at the bottom of the stairs for me. He took her and rushed her outside. I wondered over to where I'd put Hope. I took the blanket off and picked her up. She was sleeping. I held her against me and glanced over towards her mom. I fell to my knees and leaned my head over. Blood spewed out of my mouth as I threw up. I felt someone take Hope and looked up. I wiped my mouth and saw Carlisle standing there. I let out a dry sob, letting Edward help me up.

" He killed them all." I cried out. " All of them. None of them did anything wrong Edward! Except, that boy. He stole a dollar from his mother's purse. That's all! And he killed them!" I leaned my head against him and despite all my strength, I gave in to my sorrow. He rubbed my back and whispered in my ear. But all I could see was the dying mother. . . The little girl staring up at me with those dead blue eyes. . . The blonde boy huddled in the corner. I told a small group where the rest of the alive hostages were and heard them being ushered out. The storm had broken. Some vampires had managed to get away, but they were killed as soon as they were found. It was over. The war was finally over. . . I would remember it for as long as I lived. I would remember holding the dying woman and telling her that her daughter was dead. I would remember singing to her. And I would remember how good it felt to throw Mitchell into the fire and hear him scream.

**A/N: Okay, I know this chapter was really sad :( I kinda cried while writing it. Hopefully you still enjoyed it and hopefully you liked how everything ended. There's only one or two chapters left of this story and then I'll be beginning the third, which again will be titled An everlasting love. Thank you all for reading, I'm glad you enjoy my stories and my characters and everything! I write it for you guys so I'm glad you keep reading! Please review and let me know how you liked it, what your thoughts are pertaining to the chapter. This took a lot of energy out of me so I'm going to go. But again, thank you for being so loyal and for reading. You all rock faith's socks haha. Also, I changed the title of the 29th chapter on the scroll thingy that lists the chapters, but not on the actually chapter. Because then I would have to take it off and reupload it. So the new title of the 29th chapter is "The strength of an army" Just letting you all know! **

**Until next time, **

**Faith **


	31. Chapter 31 Something to live for

**Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.**

**Chapter 31- Something to live for**

Hope let out a tiny gurgle and pulled at my hair. I let out a tiny chuckle and wrapped her small hand around my finger. Alice sat beside me and tickled her stomach. " She's beautiful." She whispered. I nodded my head in agreement. I was sitting in the courtyard of the prison. Smoke was billowing up from outside of the cement wall. I'd told my troops to burn all the bodies. There were separate piles though. One pile was my men and the humans who'd been killed. Another pile was Mitchell and his men. Alice put her arm around my waist and then put her head on my shoulder. " What are you going to do with her?" She asked me quietly. I sighed and shifted Hope around to my left arm. She was so sweet. I could tell she was going to look like her mother. She already had the makings of dark brown hair, and her eyes were a light green.

" I think I'm going to keep her." I replied. I smiled and put a cold finger on her cheek. She let out a happy laugh and her eyes brightened. Alice tickled the baby some more and looked at me.

" Are you sure you can handle that?" I scoffed and rolled my eyes. Some people. . . They know you drink human blood and they assume you have no control over yourself around it.

" Yes I can handle it. I'm not a monster Alice. I would never hurt her." She shook her head and sat up, her eyes were weary and there was a cut on her arm. She'd worked her ass off in this war. As did all the other Cullens who looked pretty banged up. Nobody was able to clean themselves up yet, we were too busy getting rid of everything at the prison. Yuzria had given a potion to each of the human survivors so they wouldn't remember what had happened to them. The only one who hadn't been given one was Hope. She was too small.

" I know you could handle yourself around the blood. That isn't what I meant. And I'm sure you would make a fabulous mother. But, are you sure you want a reminder of anything that happened today around? You've gone through a lot Bella." She put a hand on my arm and smiled weakly. I returned the smile and looked back at Hope.

" I want to keep her." Was all I said. I'd made up my mind, and no one could change it. " There's just something about her." I whispered. " She seems. . . Special." Alice giggled and then stood up.

" You have a big heart Bella." She told me.

" Eh. . . I try." I joked. She nodded her head and then walked over to Jasper. I watched her throw her arms around his neck and kiss him deeply. Feeling like a peeping Bella, I looked around for my man. I frowned when I saw he was busy helping the troops cremate the bodies. I was startled when someone sat next to me. Then I heard them start to coo at Hope and knew who it was. " How's Travis?" I asked Lanina. She smirked and put her sword on the grass beside us.

" He's ok. A little wounded but, nothing that will kill him. Can I hold her?" I carefully handed Hope to Lanina, who fussed for a couple seconds. Then she started to laugh as Lanina made a face. One that made me laugh also. She sighed and looked at me. " How are you holding up? I heard it was pretty gruesome inside that prison. And for a vampire to say that you know it was bad."

" It was. . . I saw Hope's mother. She died in my arms."

" Wow. . . I heard you tell Alice you're going to keep her." I shifted in the grass and looked up at moon. Hours had passed since the war finished. But it felt like minutes.

" Come here to tell me it's a bad idea?" I asked her. She smiled and pushed her blonde hair behind her shoulder.

" Actually, I wanted to tell you that I think it's a great idea. If I were alive and something happened to me, you'd be the first person I gave my child too."

" Thanks Lan." I said softly. She put a free hand on my back and rubbed it softly.

" You'll be okay. I know it was hard on you. You should get some sleep. Rest yourself." I groaned and stood up, brushing the dirt and grass off myself quickly.

" All this sleeping almost makes me feel human again. It said in the book that I should only have to sleep every few months!"

" Those guardians probably didn't lead a war that could've been the end of the Volturi either." She pointed out. I shrugged my shoulders and took Hope from her hands. " Going to go show Edward his daughter?" She wiggled her eyebrows and stood up beside me. We shared a couple more brief moments of conversation, then I made my way over to Edward. As soon as he saw me he broke away from what he was doing and kissed me deeply. Hope giggled from in my arms. I laughed and gave him a quick peck on the cheeks before making him hold her.

" Are you sure you want to keep her?" He questioned me. I watched as he played with her and knew he wanted her just as much as I did.

" I'm positive." He nodded his head and lifted her up, then he blew a raspberry on the cloth of her stomach. I put a hand over my mouth and forced back my laughter. He looked so damn cute while playing with her. He looked up at me, his eyes bright. I could see my letter poking out of his jeans pocket. Laurent gave it to him even though he knew I was alive. Cute. He saw me eyeing it and arched an eyebrow.

" Honestly Bella, a letter?" He whispered. I glanced up at him and scowled. He walked towards me and put a hand on my cheek. " You should've known that I would've died if something happened to you. A letter wouldn't have helped to ease the pain."

" Made me feel better." I said. " Besides, I'm fine. So. . . I want you to burn that letter. Because I do not plan on dieing anytime soon." He smirked and took it out, then tossed it in the flames. I watched as the flames devoured my words and I smiled. I'd survived. I'd hoped I would, but I honestly wasn't sure.

" Carlisle called Aro and told him everything. He wants to talk to you as soon as we get home." I was about to nod my head when something struck me. He'd said home. I raised my eyebrow and grinned.

" You consider Volterra home eh?" I teased. He pulled me close to him and I saw the love for me burning in my eyes.

" If that's where you are, it's home." He replied. I put a hand on his chest and ran my hands over a small gash on his skin. He winced so I bent down and gave it a small kiss. I raised my head back up and planted a kiss on his lips. We broke away and I looked down at the ring on my finger. It shined in the bright moonlight.

" When I was with Annebelle," I began softly, my eyes still on the ring. " I never imagined that I would have a family. I thought I would die there." The memories stung at me, like a knife in the stomach. I hated thinking about what I was then, what she'd made me. " She would've loved Mitchell." I said bitterly. I turned my gaze back on Edward and saw he was frowning. Pity was practically seeping off him. I rolled my eyes and took Hope back. I loved the feel of her in my arms. " I don't want your sympathy Edward. What's done is done." I told him strongly.

" I just wish it hadn't happened to you."

" I do too." I said quietly. " I do too. . . " I looked around. Everything was calm. The fire was burning out and the prison was empty. I walked around the courtyard, I could see the marks of my fallen men. I could see where fire had scorched the ground. I put my hand against the prison wall and then I heard the jets begin to land on the opposite side of the island. Some of the men were already there from having checked the rest of the island for any of Mitchell's vamps who might've gotten away. All in all, I lost half of my men. I came with seven hundred and I was leaving with three hundred and fifty. Nobody close to me had died except Lisa. . . And Laurent was falling apart. He didn't need to tell me in order for me to know. I could see it in his eyes when he looked at me.

Two hours later, everyone but the people closest too me was gone. Our jet was almost there. We all sat in a tight circle, our bodies touching. Hope was sleeping in my arms and Edward was behind me, his arms around my waist. Lanina was sitting in Travis' lap, her head on his shoulder. Jasper and Alice were sitting together, as was Emmett and Rosalie. Esme and Carlisle were laying down beside each other, his arms held her close to him. Yuzria had left with Tori. We'd already said our goodbyes. He was going with her to England. He'd be gone by the time I got back. I gave him a kiss on the cheek and told him to keep in touch with me. He promised me that he would. Ash and Mike were in each other's arms, while Manny and Flora were walking around the courtyard. Laurent was by himself. I sighed and put my head on Edward's chest.

" That was one hell of a battle." Emmett spoke up, breaking the silence. Rosalie squeezed his hand and kissed his cheek.

" I'm glad he's dead." She said, her eyes angry. " Good men and women died because of him."

" He paid for it in the end. They always do when they fuck with Noleen." Ash responded, her eyes on mine. " You're one hell of a warrior sister." I smiled and nodded my head.

" Sister?" Jasper asked, looking confused. Ash chuckled and turned to him.

" It's a thing we did while at Annebelle's. Flora, Noleen or as you call her, Bella, Lanina and myself were so close we were sisters. We always will be. Noleen was by far the strongest one of us. She always defied Annebelle."

" And always got her ass kicked for it." Mike mumbled. I laughed and threw a small pebble at him.

" But it was so worth it." I added.

" Yeah, and the look on Annebelle's face when you would tell her no was priceless." Lanina laughed. Then we all quieted down.

" I bet she's burning right next to Mitchell." Flora whispered. I looked up and saw her and Manny had joined our group. I shook my head in agreement and scooted over so they could sit down.

" I bet they are." I whispered back to her. Silence once again fell over the group. We all were just looking around at each other. When the plane finally came, we loaded onto it. Hope didn't even squirm in my arms. I took one glance at the desolate prison and then I threw a lit torch onto it. We'd made the decision to burn the place to the ground. I couldn't agree fast enough. I looked down at Hope and smiled. Not everything bad had happened because of this war. I'd gained a daughter and gotten closer to my love. After twenty years, I had something to live for. And I wasn't about to give up the chance at a life. Annebelle had stolen my innocence and made me Noleen. Edward came back and showed me that I could be both. That I could be loving and ruthless all at the same time. Mitchell had helped me prove just how strong I was. In my heart I made a vow to protect all that was good. And anyone who got in my way would have to deal with me. I was Isabella Noleen Cullen. A Volturi member and a guardian. . .

Let them bring whatever they have. I'll always be ready.

Fin

**A/N: Ahh, the end of another story. It's all kind of bittersweet isn't it? I hope you enjoyed Forever is a long time as much as you enjoyed Eternity. I hope I did the characters justice and I hope this chapter was a good ending chapter. I'd feel sad to see them go if I hadn't planned another one haha. But then again, there's always a feeling of accomplishment when you put an end to a story that's close to you. And these stories certainly are some of my best work. Thank you all for reading, I really can't tell you how much your reviews and kind words mean to me. Thank you for assuring me that I do have some talent and that I could make it as an author :) Believe me, you don't know how glad I am to hear that because I do want to be an author. Look forward to the next story, An everlasting love. The first chapter should be posted in a few days. Again thank you for reading and please review on this chapter so I know how you liked it! **

**Until next time, **

**Faith **


	32. Chapter 32 Author's Note

**A/N: I just wanted to thank you guys for reviewing for the final chapter and for all your kind words! It means so much to me that you like my stories and enjoy them! There will be a sequel! It's titled An Everlasting Love and it should be posted by either tomorrow or the day after. Well, the first chapter and/or prologue. Again, thank you for all your support and I hope you enjoy the next story! Let's see, there's been Eternity, Forever is a long time and now there's An Everlasting Love. Do you see the pattern? lol. Thanks for reading! You all get a cake from me! haha. I love all the cookies I get from you guys ;)**

**Until next time,**

**Faith**


End file.
